There are encounters that “change our life” and encounters that “change our perception of the world”. And, hence, in a sense, change our life. To change the observation lens, to modify the gaze, to look from another angle. The more we are ready to open the gaze, to amplify the perception, the more receptive and attentive we are. We can flow like water and take shape of the container: be it a river or a glass. To encounter the artist Megumi Matsubara was that kind of experience. It wasn’t an accident, Missla Liebsekal from Another Africa suggested that we meet her in Milan, at Fonderia Battaglia. A magic place with a tangible physicality; an extraordinary artist that works with the invisible. When we close our eyes, what do we see?
This simple question, which sounds like an oxymoron, guided us in this conversation, which opened many other doors and enriched us profoundly. Missla, in her heart, knew it, but probably not even she could imagine how far it would have taken us… a true synesthetic experience. To touch, with one’s eyes, to believe.
“When we close our eyes, what do we see?”: a simple question posed by a Japanese artist opened a door to an exquisite dialogue upon language and its power to communicate. Another Africa invited Tania Gianesin and Elena Korzhenevich from the Italian foundation lettera27, together with Megumi Matsubara, an artist based between Morocco and Japan, to a roundtable following their encounter in Milan on the occasion of Matsubara’s solo show “A proposal for a textbook to learn Braille, English, and other languages”. Questioning the dichotomy between blindness and vision, the exhibition turned into a memorable departure point that expands ways of seeing.”
Get a nice cup of coffee, get cosy and continue to read on Another Africa.
Tania Gianesin, executive director and co-founder of lettera27
Claude Bunny Massassa is a contemporary artist from Gabon. She created Bunny Studio in 2016, a start-up dedicated to photography production, which became DWABI Studio in 2021. As an artist, she has represented Gabon in many international exhibitions in Senegal, Uganda, France, the United States, and Italy. In her art, she denounces social stigmas around issues of identity and mental health, and explores themes of traditions and myths.
Executive Director Kimberly Aceves- Iñiguez has been passionately committed for over 20 years to social justice organizing and advocacy efforts that bring voice and power to youth, LGBTQ people, people of color, and working-class communities in the Bay Area. Before coming on as the Executive Director for RYSE, Kimberly served as the Executive Director for Youth Together, the founding organization of the RYSE Center.
Kanwarpal Dhaliwal is one of the co-founders of RYSE and currently acts as the Associate Director. She supports and guides the implementation and integration of healing-centered practices, grounded in racial justice and liberation, and also develops, promotes, and advocates for policies, investments, practices, and research that enliven healing, justice, and liberation. Kanwarpal believes that the purpose of her work and life is to contribute to movements, communities, and legacies of liberation that honor the ancestors who fought for her existence and survival, and to forge a world that is just and gentle for future generations.
Sagal Ali is the founder and executive director of SAF. After a few years in her career in heritage protection in the cultural sector, she decided to develop the initiative to directly support young creatives in Somalia by launching her own foundation. She hopes to bridge the social gaps and inequalities women face in Somalia, both in society and in the arts scene.
Co-founders Catherine Dunga and Marleen Palmaers created Kitambo to bridge the gap between the African diaspora in Colombia and the narratives from the continent. From Kinshasa and Antwerp respectively, they work to connect African artists from the continent and their peers from the Colombian diaspora.
Martha Kazungu is a curator, art Historian and Founder of Njabala Foundation, an organization that curates periodic exhibitions and organizes a public program of activities to create a safe space for female artists to thrive and blossom.
Alicia Hansen is a photographer and teacher from New York. She founded NYC SALT in 2008 and, beyond teaching valuable creative skills to her students, has developed a long-term support system to uplift them through school and into their early artistic careers.
