About Us
What do we do?
Skin Deep makes space for creatives of colour to work towards justice through cultural production. Through our live events, online platform and print magazine, we build capacity for artists and activists in London and globally to think beyond crisis and survival, and dream of just futures.
Our small team of skilled writers, filmmakers, editors and artists delivers high impact, high production value work. We have been commissioned by Southbank Centre, ICA, Roundhouse, Barbican, Tate Modern and Bush Theatre.
We are a POC-led creative organisation that occupies a unique space in the media and arts landscape. We produce and curate work that is hopeful, that shifts the narrative away from crisis and survival. We are not reactive to short news cycles. We tap into deeper currents that flow from generations past to worlds yet to come. We take the long view, both in the stories we tell and support others to tell, and in the relationships we build with contributors, partners and our wider community.
Why do we do it?
All the work that we produce, curate and support adhere to our core values at Skin Deep. We are interested in long-term meaningful change for communities of colour that goes way beyond diversity. By connecting the work and lives of communities of colour living in diaspora and in the global south we are creating a network of creatives that is generative, strengthening and nourishing.
The people we collaborate with are like our family, so our relationships are committed and reciprocal. We want the work we do to contribute to a different kind of scaffolding and support for our communities (both local and global), that will build capacity, redistribute resources, and contribute to a legacy of hope, justice and creativity.
Ultimately we do this work to create spaces where POC communities can dream, vision and grow in all directions.
How do we do it?
The work we do is three-fold. We curate and produce a high quality artistic annual print publication. It may be old school but we believe in the physical archive! By recording and preserving the work of our communities we are contributing to a long legacy of creative work by our communities, in a form that is tangible and can’t be lost in the digital world.
Our program of live public events, where we get to bring people together in themed, collaborative knowledge-sharing spaces, is probably the thing we love the most. We have our homegrown signature events, like our Sonic Transmissions series, but we are also commissioned by large (and small) arts institutions to curate and produce live events in their spaces. Places like the Southbank Centre, ICA, Roundhouse, Barbican, Tate Modern and Bush Theatre.
And finally, we have our digital work. Skin Deep Meets – which comes in both video and written form – is our series of in-depth interviews where we platform the creatives, activists and community leaders of colour whose work inspires us.
Who do we work with?
We work collaboratively with musicians, artists, writers, dancers, poets, filmmakers, designers, architects, organisers, activists, community leaders, policy-makers and social justice workers of any kind.
No space is too big or too small for us. We’ve worked with theatres, galleries, museums, music venues, arts institutions and community-led spaces.
Who is Skin Deep for?
Although we are London-based, our community and our reach is global. The work we produce, the spaces we curate and the networks we build are for people of colour and allies who work at the intersection of justice and culture.
Who are we?
We are a small but mighty team: Anu Henriques, Sylvia Hong, Nkenna Akunna, and Georgie Johnson, working alongside magic humans like Lina Abushouk (co-editor in chief for five years, who built Skin Deep from the ground up) and Tobi Kyeremateng (our Sonic Transmissions series producer).
Special shout out to those who have helped build Skin Deep in all sorts of ways over the years we’ve been around: Edna Mohamed, Mend Mariwany, Arieh Frosh and Ciáran Christopher.
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