Sam Nairobi (2017) by Awuor Onyango

Sam Nairobi (2017)

AWUOR ONYANGO, WRITER, ARTIST, PHOTOGRAPHER, FILMMAKER.

In this particular series I was exploring what a black female body, expressing itself in queer ways, would look like standing in its power, in response to all the history of “scientific” speculation, exoticization and mammification.

What does it mean to be female and androgynous and queer and stand in your skin?

In this particular series I was exploring what a black female body, expressing itself in queer/ androgynous ways, would look like standing in its power. I was seeking a representation of the black female nude devoid of and in response to the historic positioning of the black female nude, to its violent history of being positioned subhumanly for “scientific” speculation, exoticization and mammification or uberhumanly as queen for its resilience in the face of gross pain and suffering for the sake of its offspring or/and male counterparts. What does it mean to be female and androgynous and queer and stand in your skin? To wear the influences of your lifetime on your skin outside of clothing and labels? What are the semiotics apparent on a (wilfully) participating black body, one that is present and in charge of their own narrative.

AWUOR ONYANGO