This piece is part of a series of works developed after spending time in a small Togolese village where I lived and worked on Australian aid funded community projects:
"Travelling north through the village communities of Togo, West Africa, I found myself amidst a riot. Villagers holding rocks, clubs, and rifles, pushed past the bonnet of my vehicle and continued onto the dirt road behind me. Unsure of what was happening, I continued moving slowly forward along the track. A group of armed riot police emerged and fired into the air. A tear gas canister exploded nearby and my eyes began to water before we had time to wind up the windows. Shouting and confusion erupted as the riot police divided around our car and then continued in pursuit of the protestors.
I later discovered, the villagers were rioting because their land had been taken from them.
People and places are intertwined. Improved land rights incentivises more sustainable management and conservation of the land, which can lead to improved food security for the households who rely on it. This symbiotic relationship enables us to see and understand intrinsic aspects of the land through the hearts, minds and lives of those who inhabit it.
Over the coming months, I sketched portraits of those living in the local villages where we worked, and collected Togolese newspapers from street vendors when sitting in traffic.
Using these Togolese newspapers, that describe the political and social tensions at play, this body of work comprises a series of portraits fragmented with the surrounding village landscape.
The sweeping line of a flowing river, or perhaps a shoulder? The rusted tin roof of a mud hut, or a hat? Dappled light amidst the shadow of a tree, or the back of a head? The dark shadow of a rocky outcrop, or a neck? Buildings, trees, clouds and birds - floating, falling, moving, finding their place with the people."