I wish I were British

Michela Carmazzi

2018 - Ongoing

City of London, England, United Kingdom

"I wish I were British" is a series of self-portraits investigating the relationship between personal identity and freedom of movement.

I moved to London with my partner five years ago. We were able to come and stay here thanks to our Italian passport. The UK seemed to offer good opportunities and we decided to invest our time, energy, and money in this country. Then Brexit happened.

This project is my own way of processing the experience of Brexit and the state of uncertainty that we, as EU migrants, find ourselves in. More broadly, "I wish I were British" is about the rights and privileges we are entitled to on the basis of our nationality. I looked at this from an artistic perspective and, for how impossible it is, I imagined that wearing a "British celebrity mask" could be enough to become a British citizen.

{{ readMoreButton }}

  • "I wish I were Elizabeth in my kitchen"
    Self-portrait wearing a cardboard mask of Queen Elizabeth in my kitchen.

  • "I wish I were Elizabeth in my bathroom"
    Self-portrait wearing a celebrity cardboard mask of Queen Elizabeth in my bathroom.

  • "I wish you were William"
    Portrait of my partner wearing a cardboard mask of William.

  • "I wish you were Charles"
    Portrait of my partner wearing a cardboard mask of Prince Charles.

  • "I wish I were Theresa having a shower"
    Self-portrait with a cardboard mask of Theresa May.

  • "I wish we were Camilla, Kate and Meghan" Self-portrait with friends wearing the celebrity cardboard masks of Camilla, Kate and Meghan.

  • "I wish I were Theresa in the park"
    Self-portrait wearing a cardboard mask of Theresa May.

  • "I wish we were Charles and Camilla"
    Portrait of me and my partner wearing cardboard masks of Prince Charles and Camilla

  • "I wish I were Kate"
    Self-portrait with a cardboard mask of Kate


Newsletter