Jess Liaudin, Actor, Stuntman and former MMA Fighter: “I bought a few dumbbells so I could train at home, because if not, I would have gone mental, if I wasn’t able to train. Because of that I was still living a pretty balanced life. I moved to East London just before the lockdown. It’s a very mixed area. You have Muslim people, black people, white people, young people, old people – all living in harmony. I live with things, I just adapt. I struggled when I was a child, we were very poor. I was homeless when I was 14. I travelled the world with just a back-bag, with no money. Doing all kinds of jobs, in countries where I couldn’t speak the language.”

Sarah Gregory, Writer and Social Activist: “People are looking for ways to help. We have slowed down a bit. We have found a pause, just to spend time with family and explore the things that you have not time to do during normal, or whatever normal times are.”

Anthony Barclay, Actor: “I got to spend time with family, some serious quality time. I got to spend time with my little 6-year-old. I’m her supply teacher. That is a great honour to spend time, one-on-one for hours each day. We are incredibly privileged that we are still healthy, that we have somewhere to live, a roof over our heads and we have enough money to survive. I speak to my mum, my brother and my sister more. I’m interacting with them more than I would normally do. More people, I suspect, are doing more work from home, than when they were at work.”

Teresa Rocha, Key Worker: “It might sound selfish, but I really enjoyed the peace and quiet of the empty streets. Just the mood itself, for a change. After the first couple of weeks you could tell how blue the sky was. I found that people in general are more friendly and more relaxed and much more appreciative.”

Reginald Arkhurst, Barrister (Specialising in Immigration and Human Rights): “Sitting in the house all day is a bit boring, I have a lot of books to read though. We have a very nice community here, it’s a very nice place to be. I’m lucky. My mother-in-law lives next door, and my brother-in-law lives a couple of doors down. He does all the shopping for us. I’m very lucky in that regard. One lesson is the value of people. All the people that some people look down on should be elevated and show the added value they bring.”

Tamsin Lewis, Musician: “What I have missed immensely is playing music with people, but also playing music for people. So I decided to go and play music in my front garden, so at least I can connect with people.”

Sofian Ferrad, 5-a-side Football Player: “Enjoy your life. We only have one life. When we die, no more. We belong to God. I’m keeping fit. I’m playing football by myself. I’m riding my bike and hopefully soon we can play football again.”

Sibusiso Mamba, Actor, Director and Playwright: “We need stories. Stories are how we process our own world. Stories are how we process the world around us. Stories are how we process crisis. The urge to create is primal. The urge to tell a story is primal. For the live arts, one of the things that us creators have to do is make the work so worthwhile that people are willing to come and sit in that space for two hours, with masks on. The biggest positive was spending time with my children. Every single day, all day, watching them transform and grow. It had to take the world to stop, for probably the most natural things, to spend time with the people you love.”

Mendy Korer, Rabbi: “Suddenly now there is a need of having a local community. People are looking out for each other and caring for each other. At that positive community elements, how do you keep that going? Is it possible to keep it going or are we just going to slip back to the way we used to be in the past? Regarding the positives of that community spirit, ultimately it’s a challenge for all of us. It’s not something that is just going to happen. It’s for each of us to go and say, ‘I want to be different’. It is up to us to go and say that we are going to make a new society.”

Marianna and Stella Criscuolo, Freelancer and her daughter: “It reminded me a bit about my childhood, when you made the best of getting on your bike and going to the park; a simpler way of life. This has taught us that a slower pace of life is OK.”

Eleni Kiomourtzi, Businesswoman: "My philosophy of life is you have two ways: are you going to sit down and keep crying about what you have lost, or are you going to pull your sleeves up and do what you do best and work to bring back everything you have lost? It was the biggest holiday ever. I have never had so much time off work. So much time to think, to put things right; to read, to do things I didn’t have the time to do before. For the very first time I got to meet my neighbours. One of our neighbours set up a WhatsApp group for the whole street, to help all those who needed help with anything, from shopping to garden waste. There was help for everything and they even raised money for charities.”

Doreen Graham, Business Owner: “There is some kindness, especially from my clients. They have been quite caring. They told me: Doreen, please stay away, to keep yourself and us safe, and we will continue you to pay you 100% of your wages. And they kept checking on me and my family to make sure we were ok. When people show you kindness and in turn you show them kindness, it just goes like a chain. If everyone could be like this, then the world would be wonderful.”

Antonia Vaughan, Yoga Instructor: “For me it’s been a more of a personal journey and a personal experience. I’d like to think that it has taught me gratification if anything, and to appreciate what I’ve really got. Essentially appreciate all I have, and I’m talking about health, a healthy body and a healthy mind. Because at the end of the day that’s what matters the most. Kindness and a conversation with neighbours. That really goes a long way. I’d like to believe that this had to happen, as awful as it was. It has forced us to slow down to a point of almost coming to a halt. We’ve had to stop living the way we were, and I really hope it’s going to change the way we have been living.”

Melissa Fun, Television Journalist and Author: “The first two months of the lockdown were ok; I was doing post-production on my Thailand story about people sending their elderly family members to care homes in the UK. There was a sign next door asking if anybody wanted to cook meals for the needy and sheltering. I started cooking 50-60 meals a week. It was nice to help out. The nicest thing that has come out of this, is making new friends. Getting to know your neighbours.”

Past Exhibition

Yamam Nabeel: Waiting for Time (Stories in Colour)