Dr Esther Johnson’s film, ‘Alone Together, The Social Life of Benches’ to be shown as part of the Michael Young Centenary Conference

Dr Esther Johnson‘s film, Alone Together, the Social Life of Benches illuminates the thoughts and memories of frequent users of two public spaces in London: General Gordon Square, Woolwich and St Helier Open Space, Sutton.

Revolving around the micro-space of the humble bench, the emotional and experiential capacity of film is used as an instrument to highlight themes such as the feeling of being in a space, the rhythm and flow of visitors to a places, and the importance of everyday design. The film acts like a stranger who joins you on a bench to ‘watch the world go by’ and break the ice by starting a conversation with their fellow bench user.

Further information on the Michael Young Centenery Conference, ‘#MY100: Social Innovation: Tackling Inequality in the 21st Century’ taking place at Barbican Conference Centre on 11 November is available here.

Dr Esther Johnson is an artist and filmmaker working at the intersection of artist moving image and documentary portraiture. Find out more about her work here. Esther is a Reader in Media Arts at Sheffield Hallam University.