‘Love, Power, Unity’: A New Book Documents London’s Notting Hill Carnival From Inside the Parade

Community photographer Hark1karan will release his fifth book in as many years next month. Arawak, named after the Indigenous people of South America and the Caribbean, documents a single day in the company of the British Trinidadian Arawak Carnival Mas Band, which Lynda Joseph formed in 1999, captured at Carnival in 2024.

Hark1karan’s practise revolves around allowing his subjects to tell their own story — he actively tries to avoid inserting himself into his telling, so the finished piece is merely a presentation of the photographs which he believes exhibit the subject as “authentically” as possible. He points to previous works, whether that’s the young BMW car enthusiasts of Southall, or the portrait of the residents of Central Hill housing estate, as being “not really about identity, but instead being just about people’s lives.” “We let them tell their story — a human story — so it feels like you can connect to it,” he says. “We’re letting them tell their truth. So it’s relatable to people like them but also to people outside.”

His representation of Carnival in Arawak is specifically focused not on what he refers to as the “sound systems”, which derive largely from Jamaican music culture, but the parades and floats, which have their origins in Trinidad’s own annual Carnival, and whose decorative handcrafted outfits are judged at the day’s end. “They want to win,” he says. “They take it very seriously, the costumes are really important to them.” But the competitive edge easily exists with a spirit of togetherness and celebration. Love, power, and unity.

“There are people with bigger bodies. Expressing themselves. They’re free. They’re happy. People light, people dark. Some Indian. The group throughout the day was very diverse: People from different islands would gather, bringing everyone together. Folks from Europe. It felt like a family and the whole thing was really positive. You feel welcome straight away. Everyone is looking out for each other. As long as you get it and embrace it, they look out for you. I feel like I’m part of this now.”

Perhaps more than any other, for Hark1karan there’s one photograph (below) which encapsulates the story, the “great energy” of the day. “Everyone together…I’m on top of a truck with my camera — with a great view of everything,” he says. “It’s like a Renaissance painting.”

The official launch of the Arawak photobook will take place at The Tabernacle, Notting Hill on Thursday 8 May — it is free to attend. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. with a live talk from 7 p.m., hosted by the illustrator Raj Dhunna, and featuring panelists Hark1karan, Arawak mas band founder Lynda Joseph, DJ MasterJ and artist Shayne de-Lande, it will explore the roots of Carnival, the culture of mas bands, the sound of soca, and the story behind the photography project.

The book costs £16 and is available exclusively via Hark1karan’s website.