LEIA ANKERS - EXPOSURE INTERNATIONAL OPEN CALL

The Same As You was instigated and informed from having a disability myself as I was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 3. Growing up I spent a lot of time at home due to yearly operations from the ages of 4 to 16. When I hit my teens, this had a substantial impact; I felt quite secluded when I began secondary school as each year I would be off school for a long period of time after my operations.

I discovered photography in these years and used it as a way of having fun and coping whilst I was at home, seeing from afar, other teenagers leading their lives. I basically withstood the enforced loneliness in these teen years through taking photographs of my family and objects around the house. I’d push myself around in my wheelchair, excited each day with finding new things to photograph around the family home. My interest and fascination in photography can be traced back to this time in my life.

These personal differences from a young age introduced me to the experience of stigma, of being the ‘Other’ and as I got older I decided I wanted to take this into my photographic work. I wanted to change the way that people with dual sensory impairment and additional disabilities are perceived by society. This is how The Same As You began, my aim to represent the perception of disability.

BIOGRAPHY

Leia Ankers is a British Documentary and portrait photographer.