The Cost of Dying: Margaret Mitchell, & Dying in the Margins at Glasgow University
There was a jarring sense of change as I encountered Glasgow University’s ambitious new Advanced Research Centre, one of the buildings that have replaced the old Western Infirmary in Glasgow’s West End. The hospital once loomed large on the landscape around the area, a place were many in the city would have encountered the death of loved ones, including myself. Perhaps then it was fitting that my first visit to these shiny new buildings would focus on The Cost of Dying, and the stories of those at the end of their lives in Scotland.
Margaret Mitchell’s photography, part of a wider body of work entitled “As the Day Closes”, provides a focal point for a four year research project at the University which sought to bring light to the socio-economic inequalities that exist in end of life care in urban and rural areas. Spending time with the people who had volunteered to provide their story to the project, Margaret was allowed into their lives at a time when many people want to lock the doors and hide away. Throughout Margaret's career she has consistently approached themes of hardship and worked with marginalised groups with respect and care. There is no doubt that she was the correct choice to illustrate this study, creating striking portraits that leave space for thought while never removing agency from the sitter.
While viewed as portraits which illustrate a story, a real and terrible tale of the ways in which people are often let down as they come to terms with the end of their lives, they also offer an insight into photography's role in creating something for others. As part of the overall research, Margaret’s considered and professional approach can become a part of the participant’s legacy. Something that they have left behind for future generations not only in terms of their role in the project, but more importantly as a reminder of who they were in this life. The portrait of Liz at home in her flat surrounded by the great passion in her life, vintage clothing and fashion. It is clear from her demeanour that Liz is not in a good way. Her hand raised to her face in a gesture of pain and tiredness, yet she cuts a striking figure. Decked out in a yellow and black plaid jacket, think Vivienne Westwood with golden adornments in her hair, it is clear that Liz remained punk until the very end. There’s something comforting in the belief that photography can keep our memory alive in a positive manner, even when made in the darkest of times.
Mitchell’s images are supported by photographs taken by the participants themselves using the Photovoice model. Photovoice is a methodology which seeks to use photography in an ethical manner by placing the camera, and its resultant power, in the hands of the person whose story the project seeks to tell. With guidance from the research team the participants were encouraged to photograph their daily routines, their surroundings and the things that were important to them. This creates another layer to the exhibition and any thoughts about photography that may arise by ensuring that each participant’s section of the display is unique to them. We are allowed an insight into the moments where participants are alone with their thoughts, away from the performative aspects which take place in front of the camera. Moments of humour and despair sit side by side. Documents relating to their illness, pleas to local politicians and times of excitement in their lives which all come together to create a more rounded depiction of each person and what they have left behind.
In an ideal world we might have been able to see more of these images exhibited. No matter how well Margaret Mitchell can collaborate and depict a person through the lens using all of her skills and experience, the ability of a person to tell their story on their own terms is something which we can all learn from when working with people.
Of course, as all of the stories brought forward by this project tell us, we do not live in an ideal world.
The stories told within the exhibition were explored further in a panel discussion that afternoon. Attended mostly by professionals in and around the areas of end of life care, social housing and general healthcare, the discussion was both invigorating and disheartening. The discussion generated as many ideas and debates that could be expected by a gathering of knowledgeable and passionate people who seek to make things better for people in their hour of need. To hear creative and imaginative proposals based on professional experience is always welcome, even for someone who comes from outside of their world. However bookending the discussion were comments from two GPs who made clear that the biggest problem faced is not simply one which exists at the end of life, but that they are themselves a symptom of inequality in services, in distribution of wealth and in prevailing social attitudes throughout our systems and offices.
Perhaps these highlight something of the project’s main focus. These are not issues of death, but issues of life and how we are forced to live it.
Photography has long held a fascination with death and dying. From Barthes and Sontag to Glasgow’s own Colin Gray the medium and its commentators have forever acknowledged the spectre that hangs over the image making process. Tackled head on here by Margaret Mitchell and the End of Life Studies Group we see another addition to that history. Hopefully in this case, we can see some tangible outcomes. That the exhibition and the research behind it can create change in the quality of life before death for all of us as we face that single certainty in our collective futures.
The Cost of Dying exhibition runs from 25 April to 5 May, open to visitors from 09:00 to 17:00 and on Saturday from 10:00 to 16:00 at the Advanced Research Centre (ARC) at The University of Glasgow
