Keith Osborn is a local photographer living and working in Norfolk. ‘Free As A Bird’ was the result of discussions between himself and Pandora Project during the coronavirus lockdowns of 2020 and 2021, a period when reports of domestic abuse were rising. Aware of this through news coverage, Keith began exploring whether, as a photographer, he could help raise awareness in a meaningful way.
Why did you call the exhibition ‘Free As A Bird’?
The project’s aim was to celebrate life after domestic abuse. To celebrate those who survive.
It was important for me to read and consider the actual words of genuine domestic abuse survivors, and it was these that formed the backbone of the imagery – the words written on the subjects’ bodies. Pandora Project facilitated this by working and talking directly with their clients on my behalf to source the words and phrases.
And one comment: “I sit and enjoy a cup of coffee knowing I’m free as a bird…” really stayed with me. It gave me the title for the project.
Domestic abuse is often a subject people shy away from. What made you want to take on such a “difficult” subject?
The project was the result of discussions with Pandora Project which commenced in the COVID lockdowns of 2020 and 2021. The lockdowns themselves were resulting in increased reports of incidents of domestic abuse, and I wanted to see what I, as a photographer, could do to raise awareness of the issue. So we began talking.
So much imagery around domestic abuse concentrates on the experience rather than its survival. It seemed to me that there was relatively little imagery that was positive and celebrated women who had survived domestic abuse and gone on to live fulfilling and happy lives. It felt important and I wanted to bring that to the fore.
How did you use photography to tell the story of survival?
I wanted the photographs to do more than illustrate individual experiences. I wanted the series as a whole to tell a story.
The exhibition was structured in two parts. The first six photographs follow the journey of a single survivor, moving from the experience of domestic abuse towards a place where she is able to look positively and confidently towards the future. For me, that seemed important because domestic abuse is not a single moment in someone’s life. It is an experience that people move through, often over a long period of time.
The second set of six photographs broadens the focus to different women and explores what comes after survival. These images are about women reclaiming their lives, rebuilding their confidence, and finding hope, contentment and freedom again.
Taken together, the two halves of the project tell a larger story. The first is about surviving domestic abuse. The second is about living beyond it. I wanted viewers to leave with the understanding that, while domestic abuse can have devastating consequences, it should not have to define the rest of a woman’s life. With the right support, recovery, hope and a positive future are possible.
Why was it important to use the words of genuine survivors within the photographs?
Because the project was never intended to be about my interpretation of domestic abuse. It was important that the work was rooted, as far as possible, in the experiences of women who had actually lived through it.
The words written on the bodies of the subjects came directly from genuine survivors through Pandora Project. They brought an authenticity and integrity to the work that I could never have created on my own. In many ways, the photographs provided the visual framework, but it was the words themselves that carried the emotional truth of the project.
I hope that by incorporating those voices directly into the images, viewers were able not only to see the photographs, but also to engage with the experiences, resilience and hope of the women whose words inspired them.
How did you handle such a sensitive subject, visually and ethically?
This was my single biggest area of learning. I understood quite quickly that some of my own ideas, particularly for individual photographs, failed to take sufficiently into account the full dignity and respect it was necessary to show to those who had survived abuse.
It was not enough to write the phrase and make the photograph (however worthy); there needed to be the utmost level of empathy and agency visible in the photographs that were being made. If we were going to do this project well, it mattered how it was done as much as the fact that it was done.
I have to thank the staff from Pandora Project primarily for helping me with this, as well as the women themselves who were photographed.
I learnt a lot and I hope I’m a better person and photographer for having done this project.
How did you choose the models involved?
This was done primarily via a carefully worded model call on the social media outlets associated with my photography practice. I wanted to ensure that we worked with women who understood the importance of the project and the responsibility of what we were doing. I also wanted to ensure that there was a representative range of women in the images in terms of both age and experience as domestic abuse is not selective.
In the end I’m pleased to say that all of the women we photographed were very conscious of the value and importance of what we were doing and gave everything to help us create the final project. Thanks to them all.
What do you hope people took away from the project?
I wanted people to see that domestic abuse is survivable. Those who may be going through it or those who just see the news stories. Female victims and, importantly, their (most often male) perpetrators.
Of course, heartbreakingly, not every woman does survive domestic abuse, but many do and with the right help and support, that feeling of being free as a bird is possible.
Did the project change your perspective?
It was life-changing for me. To begin to gain even a glimpse of what women can go through at the hands of a domestic abuser was shocking. To realise the many forms such abuse can take was deeply sobering.
To read the words of those who had suffered and the words of those who had come out the other side – those words generously provided by genuine survivors so that we could complete this project with integrity – was a revelation to me.
The experience raised my awareness and opened my eyes, and I will never look at this subject in the same way again.
What would you say to a friend who was experiencing domestic abuse?
I would say that this is not their fault, that no blame attaches to them. I would urge them to get help from a reputable organisation like Pandora Project. And I would ask them to believe with every fibre of their being that they can survive and thrive. They can experience hope as a practical reality, not just an aspiration.
They can be free.
