MIKA

After a call of sharing thoughts, laughing and exchanging words of affirmation, It’s a sure revelation that MIKA GULIWA WALKS WITH AN UNDOUBTED AMOUNT OF ASSURANCE FOR HERSELFAND THE BECOMING SHE IS YET TO MEET. Her work speaks for that split second where everything felt just right and that’s what she captures, a right moment. It was a random awakening Mika recalls that led her down a path that now sees euphoria burgeoning through her photos (you’ll read all about it). Mika is all for the ‘girlies’ in the industry and encourages anybody with self-doubt to break out saying “You can’t compete where you do not compare. I’m also saying that not just to other people but to myself as well. There’s literally no one else like you in the world, and that is your power.”

TELL US ABOUT MIKA, YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY JOURNEY AND WHERE IT STARTED?

Mika is a very quirky and interesting human being. I love anything that’s different given the type of person that I am and my experiences up to now. They haven’t been the greatest and not in a very hectic way. Growing up in a school where I was bullied, I was always the awkward one so I kind of had to be either smart or talented at something because I wanted to belong. So, because of that I’ve always been interested in something different. People who had very weird talents, and it didn’t have to be just artistic ones. Like being good at netball, or cooking, makeup. I’ve always been drawn to people who are good at something unconventional. So, Mika is the type of person who’s interested in things that have a story to tell.

My photography journey started in the 11th grade when my uncle bought me a camera which I didn’t ask for. I think it just clocked him that maybe a camera would be good for this little human being. I’ve been taking pictures since. Since I was 17.

HOW’S THE JOURNEY BEEN SO FAR?

Creatively it’s been great. Obviously I do have situations where I experience creative blocks and I want to execute but it’ll be so tough because I don’t have the resources or the team to try and bring those ideas to life. These things require a team, money, time and effort and it can be very tough when you’re still trying to find your feet. I’m not a well known famous photographer but it can be tough when you want to execute something. But, it doesn’t stop me from still doing it and trying to use the resources that I have. I feel like one thing about being creative and whatever that means to someone, is that you always pivot. You use those struggles as a will to come out on top. If I can not be the best I can be different.

WHAT SUBJECT MATTER AND SETTING APPEALS TO YOU MOST?

It’s actually not the setting or subject matter that appeals to me. The real reason why I started taking photography so seriously is because of what my late grandmother said to me. I was raised by her my whole life and I remember one day creating and going through an existential crisis, bored and thought let me bother my grandmother. I asked her “yoh Gogo, if the house was burning down what are the three things you’d save?” She said to me “I’d save our I.D’s, my family and my photo albums”. I found that very interesting and I asked her why the photo albums and she said because that’s the last memory we have of our loved ones. You need something tangible that will remind you of them. It’s more than just a picture, a picture tells a narrative.

ON YOUR INSTAGRAM THERE’S IMAGES YOU

TAKE OF PEOPLE IN THEIR MOST NATURAL ELEMENT, A LOT OF THEM JUST HAVING A GOOD TIME. IS THIS YOUR LIKING FOR A VERY ORGANIC AESTHETIC?

To be honest I don’t think that far. I think a lot of the time it’s about capturing the moment and what story is that picture telling. There’s times I’d go to an event and take pictures there but it’s so different from event photography. Both a photographer and myself would be at an event shooting but our pictures are very different. For me, it’s more of a “oh, this is such a cool moment, people are being themselves, let me just capture that quickly”. I always look for a story to tell.

DO YOU FEEL IT’S IMPORTANT FOR CREATIVES TO BE OPEN ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCES?

I think it’s important to share their experiences and not just the fun part. It makes you relatable. One thing about your creative work is that it’s not shaped by how talented you are sometimes but it’s mostly shaped by your daily habits, like what are you doing to get to where you wanna be. I also think it’s important because you can create a community. I lost the pictures in Thailand and posted about it in my story and a really good reputable photographer uAndile reached out to me and said don’t give up, capture your work in real-time so that when you go back and see the amount of pictures that you’ve lost you’ll appreciate it. You’ll figure out what went wrong and what you could have done differently. So, I think by daring to be vulnerable and sharing those experiences, you will get the type of support that you need.

I READ A POST OF YOURS WHERE YOU SPOKE ABOUT YOUR PROCESS OF REVIEW AND REFLECTION WITH YOUR WORK AND NOT COMPARING YOUR WORK TO YOUR COUNTERPARTS IN THE INDUSTRY. CAN WE SPEAK ABOUT STAYING IN YOUR OWN LANE AND NOT FALLING INTO THE TRAP OF COMPARISON?

I keep preaching this to my friends, whether you’re creative or not. I keep telling them that insecurities are so pointless. The concept of it is valid but it’s also pointless because there’s no one above you and there’s no one below you. You can’t compete where you do not compare. I’m also saying that not just to other people but to myself as well. There’s literally no one else like you in the world, and that is your power. I’d be damned if someone is not yet to share their work because they fear they might not be good enough. If anything I feel like people fear that they could be great. You actually fear that you’d succeed then what? Prove yourself wrong then what? Things might work out for the better then what? If you’re in a situation where an opportunity presents itself it’s not by chance or by luck it’s for a reason. It’s a testimony to what you’re doing so don’t ever feel like you don’t belong. Simple maths.

Mishaal Gangaram reminds us that TAPPING INTO YOUR INNER CHILD COULD BE JUST WHERE YOUR POT OF GOLD MAY BE LYING. “A lot of my creativity stems from that inner child. Young Mishaal was a super shy kid and a nerd. I think that he never thought this life could be his. I think just remembering that and keeping that energy, playing, being silly and having lighter moments.” Paying attention to Greek mythology and constructing worlds of fey, “SON of MIDAS ‘’ pays homage to the geeker, the kid who wants to submerge in play and who deserves a stake at being represented. The collective ‘Children of Midas’ is his creative team who’s built a fort of both work and play. They assign themselves the duty of giving birth to an ethereal surprise.