{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O1651339"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1651339/"}},"images":null,"see_also":null},"record":{"systemNumber":"O1651339","accessionNumber":"PH.365-2021","objectType":"Photograph","titles":[{"title":"Masjid Ali Mosque, Aston Church Road, Birmingham, West Midlands, 13 June 2014","type":"assigned by artist"}],"summaryDescription":"For over a decade, Simon Roberts photographed events and places across Britain that have drawn people together in public, communal experiences. His portfolio Merrie Albion - Landscapes Studies of a Small Island offers a visual chronicle of social, political and sometimes personal events in Britain and explores the common desire for a sense of belonging. Whilst Roberts’ interests have often gravitated towards evolving patterns of leisure, and the consumption and commodification of history, he frequently photographs events and places that have a more immediate, topical significance in the turning of Britain’s recent history.\r\n\r\nMerrie Albion ranges across various projects produced between 2007-2017, from single photographs made around the time of We English (2008), to Roberts’ subsequent photographs of the General Election of 2010, made during his role as the British Election Artist, his series The Social Landscapes of Leisure (2013) and National Property: The Picturesque Imperfect (2013-15), and photographs from the 2012 Olympics in London. In this work, Roberts also explores the themes of the monarchy, energy security, immigration, Scottish independence and the Brexit referendum vote. Roberts’ chronicling of events and public atmospheres charts Britain’s recent history and highlights the enduring influence of the country’s past on its present.\r\n\r\nThe portfolio contains all sixty-six photographs from the project, along with a copy of the monograph, which was published in 2017 by Dewi Lewis Publishing. The book contains contributions by AL Kennedy, Alex Vasudevan, Carol Ann Duffy, David Matless, David Chandler, Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Ian Jeffrey, Irenosen Okojie, Nikesh Shukla and Tristram Hunt.","physicalDescription":"","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"Simon Roberts","id":"AUTH346460"},"association":{"text":"","id":""},"note":""}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[],"techniques":[],"materialsAndTechniques":"","categories":[{"text":"Brexit","id":"THES284570"},{"text":"Politics","id":"THES48908"},{"text":"Landscapes","id":"THES250800"},{"text":"Sport","id":"THES48893"},{"text":"Royalty, Monarchy and State Affairs","id":"THES393224"}],"styles":[],"collectionCode":{"text":"DOP","id":"THES291628"},"images":[],"imageResolution":"low","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"LVLF","id":"THES49656"},"free":"","case":"X","shelf":"993","box":"E"}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"Photograph","id":"AAT46300"}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[{"place":{"text":"West Midlands","id":"x29438"},"association":{"text":"","id":""},"note":""},{"place":{"text":"Birmingham","id":"x28748"},"association":{"text":"","id":""},"note":""}],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"2014","earliest":"2014-01-01","latest":"2014-12-31"},"association":{"text":"","id":""},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[],"creditLine":"","dimensions":[],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[],"objectHistory":"","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Photograph from the series ‘Merrie Albion – Landscape Studies of A Small Island’ by Simon Roberts, 2018","bibliographicReferences":[],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"","id":""},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":[],"galleryLabels":[],"partNumbers":["PH.365:52-2021"],"accessionNumberNum":"365","accessionNumberPrefix":"PH","accessionYear":2021,"otherNumbers":[],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2025-04-19","recordCreationDate":"2021-08-13","availableToBook":false}}