From 13 – 23 November, I lead four African artists on a trans-African journey of "quiet listening" across the Okavango Delta and crossing borders from Botswana into Namibia.
The human being is a complex navigation system – a GPS, so to speak – by how one's energy is organised. Relying on the above premise, the overarching mood of this road trip project will be one of quiet and deep listening, accounting for the intricacies of the artist's subjectivity.
The Okavango Delta is one of the seven Natural Wonders of Africa and a Unesco World Heritage site. A host to myriad species of wildlife, floras and faunas. Yet, it must be said that such a wonderous "accident of nature" does not continually escape the intrusion of humans. There are pertinent concerns about strategies of extraction, erasure and destruction prevalent in the human relation/relationship with the Delta.
Thus, over the coming days, we shall commune, converse, question and critic together as we travel the interstices between human-made borders and the beautiful accident of nature. We shall deploy our body and presence as active-sentient-thinking beings in translating impulses into artistic outcomes. Artists: Pauline Ndhlovu (Namibia), Thero Makepe (Botswana), Anita Sambanje (Angola), Kea Mosienyane (Botswana). Whispers of the Wilderness is conceived and supervised by Emeka Okereke in partnership with the National Geographic Society.Equipement partner: Leica Fotografie International Germany.