Anansesem (in progress)

The purpose of this project is to celebrate the triumph of Ananse and my heritage as a Jamaican of African descent. The character Ananse the Spider is part of a rich history that has been preserved through storytelling.

I created these illustrations for a book of Ananse stories I put together from re-tellings by friends and various published versions. I orchestrated the costuming*, make-up, and set design for each of these shoots and worked in layers to bring the characters into their current forms.

If you would like to read some of the Ananse stories I gathered, I can send you the pdf when you email me through the form on this site.

*some of the clothing items were designed with the help of Berchell Egerton whose wax print artworks bring joy to life

Installation Images (Milk Gallery, New York. 2017):

This wall hanging and bookstand were made of laser-cut pieces and assembled by hand. In keeping with my process of utilizing light-weight materials, I used chipboard and plywood to construct these objects.