they tell us

In 2013, I was invited by Kizito Kasule of the Nagenda International Academy of Art and Design, in Uganda, to be a visiting artist lecturer. During my time there I was inspired through working with the students of NIAAD and living within the small community of Namulande. Throughout my time in Uganda, I heard a colloquilism used so often that I found it hard to ignore, ‘they tell us.’ It was never said as a stand alone statement, but dropped into larger conversations with such ease and fluency that it could easily be overlooked. For me, it is a phrase which perhaps has an underlying significance. I have come to think of it as testament to the heightened value given to spoken word, and the passing on of wisdom to a younger generation. These images are part of a larger ongoing series, which sets out to contemplate the idea of home in contemporary Uganda, while addressing the complicated notion of representation of the other. Weaving together visual motifs found in the landscape accompanied by fragmented images of people, a personal story emerges, that of the people who I came to know well and the landscape they inhabit. “For us, when we are young, they tell us ‘don’t whistle at night child, you are inviting the snakes’ ” Emily Grace, September 25th 2013