Filmmaker and photographer Ian Watts presented a large-scale photographic installation, Carnival Through the Lens of Ian Watts, at Outernet, London’s most visited cultural destination, as part of its Black History Season in October 2025, in collaboration with Camden’s Black History Month.
The exhibition immersed audiences in the rhythm, energy, and cultural heartbeat of one of the world’s most iconic street festivals, the Notting Hill Carnival. It was accompanied by an evocative soundscape created by Blackmale Beats, enhancing the sensory experience and deepening the emotional resonance of the work.
Watts’ photographs trace a powerful creative arc, from the moody, defiant spirit of the 1970s through to the explosive expansion of the 1980s, when Carnival emerged as both a cultural celebration and a political statement. His work captures the full spectrum of the Carnival experience, from intricate costumes and dynamic movement to the rise of sound systems and the vibrancy of street life.
