T h e
S u n s h i n e
M e n Christopher Osborne
T h e
S u n s h i n e
M e n
C h r i s t o p h e r O s b o r n e 2 0 1 5
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Preface The light industrial area of Umm Ramool lies between Dubai’s iconic DXB Terminal 3, and IKEA’s deep blue and yellow symbol of value furniture retailing, yet this area of Dubai is far closer to the East than the West. Eyes closed, and listening to the sounds, it is easy to imagine that you’re standing in Delhi, Mumbai or even Lahore. This is the home of the Sunshine Garage, which is nestled between a workers restaurant and another garage. There is a quiet team of young men, mostly from Pakistan, but some from India. They industriously service and repair. Parts that would simply be discarded in the West are cut, modified and rebuilt. Opening a box or plastic bag to use something new is a last resort here. Whole engines and gearboxes are rebuilt. The spray booth doesn’t just mend but also transforms Arabic white 4x4’s into gleaming black motors for the African market. Hashmi’s team are humble, yet knowledgeable, quiet, yet motivated, skilled and hardworking. I set out to capture the story of the workforce of the Sunshine Garage, “the Sunshine Men”. Everyone at the Sunshine Garage has welcomed me, and I can’t help noticing that there is a bond between this group of men, all far away from home, all from different places, a kind of Eastern Band of Brothers. Christopher Osborne 2015
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L i s t o f P l a t e s Cover 5 Interior view of the Sunshine Garage 7 Hashmi, owner and manager of the Sunshine Garage 9 Hashmi on the office telephone with reflections of the garage 11 Mohammed, Hashmi and Majid in the office/reception 13 Andrew looks up from the newspaper while Imran masks a car with paper 15 Tools lie on the workbench 17 Portrait of Riaz 19 Toyota 4x4 differential on the bench 21 Hashmi in full flow… 23 Portrait of Rizwan 25 Mazhar tops up transmission fluid 27 Portrait of Imran 29 Riaz in the workshop 31 Toyota 4x4 axle 33 Mazhar and Rizwan chat to ??? a fellow Pakistani while oil drains from his van 35 Portrait of Anwar 37 Damaged engine components 39 Paint booth 41 Mahommed fits trim back onto a car after spraying 43 Portrait of Anwar 45 Mazhar’s reflection is caught in a car window 47 Rest room 49 Rest room close up – switch, hanger and taqiyah 51 Irfan climbs out of the engine compartment of a 4x4 53 Portrait of Mazhar 55 Rizwan talks politics with Riaz while Mazhar looks on 57 Engine oil still life 59 Imran polishing 61 Imran in the spray booth 63 Irfan moving a car 65 Still life of nuts and bolts 67 Mazhar replaces a radiator hose under light from an LED strip 69 The Sunshine Garage just before closing time
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A c k n o w l e d g e m e n t s Hashmi, his team, and the customers of the Sunshine Garage have allowed me to interrupt their daily routine in order to take this series of photographs. There have been times where I have got in their way, and they could not have been more patient and gracious. I can’t thank the following people enough: Mohammed Saud Hashmi Owner/Manager Riaz Iqba Assistant Manager Mohammed Irfan Senior Mechanic Rizwan Ashraf Auto electrician Mazhar Hussain Senior Mechanic Mohammed Imran Spray painter Afzal Bajwa Driver Anwar Hussain Customer Majid Mohammed Al Shamsi Customer Mohammed Hussain Customer Finally, I’d like to thank Andy Moxon from the University of Gloucestershire for his teaching, critique, encouragement, and enthusiasm for this project. Christopher 2015
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