DIARY OF A BORDER-BEING

musings in the in-between spaces of socio-cultural conflations

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  • In Search of The Collective

    by Emeka Okereke

    In beginning this reflection about the collective, I have, ringing at the back of my head, an Igbo saying: Igwe bụ ike which translates to “the collective is power”. This saying is in many ways fundamental to the social psychology of the Igbo people of Nigeria with whom I share a lineage. Elsewhere, Chinua Achebe, the acclaimed Nigerian novelist, and critic, referred to this as...

    February 29, 2020
    Comments 0
    Africa, Borders, Contemporary Art, Post-Colonial Discourse, trans-Africa
  • A Glimpse of Chennai, and its Photo Biennale (Part 1)

    by Emeka Okereke

    Twenty-four hours prior to hopping into a plane for a fifteen-hour journey, I had no idea I would eventually be making it to Chennai. My Nigerian passport seems to be the gift that keeps on giving where it has to do with being a document that, rather than aid mobility, actively facilities its restrictions. I was informed by the Indian embassy that holders of...

    March 28, 2019
    Comments 0
    Chennai
  • Seeing in the Eye: On Photography and the Gaze

    by Emeka Okereke

    “The danger of identifying with a stranger is the possibility of becoming a stranger. To lose one’s racialized rank is to lose one own valued and enshrined difference”. In my preoccupation with borders, movement and all the various forms of differences they presuppose, I have, more often than not, encountered the question: how can imagery (and by extension photography) play a useful role in...

    February 7, 2019
    Comments 0
    Art, Borders, Contemporary Art, culture, Featured, Photography
  • Emeka Okereke Awarded France’s Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters: Acceptance Speech

    by Emeka Okereke

    On Saturday, 27th October 2018, Nigerian photographer, filmmaker, writer and visual artist, Emeka Okereke, was conferred France’s prestigious insignia of Chevalier De l’Ordre Des Arts et Des Lettres (Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters) by the Ministry of Culture of France. The award ceremony took place at the new Alliance Francaise, Lagos. The event was officiated by the Ambassador of France to...

    December 3, 2018
    Comments 0
    Emeka Okereke
  • Is Amoeba Shapeless, or is Shapelessness a Shape?

    by Emeka Okereke

    I want to begin this reflection by taking some memory-steps back to my high school days when I was a science student. In our biology class, we were introduced to Amoeba, the shapeless, single-cell organism. As with most students of my age, the only character of this organism I really retained was its shapelessness. How can something be shapeless? I often wondered. The whole...

    July 10, 2018
    Comments 0
    Emeka Okereke, Essays, Featured, Post-Colonial Discourse, reflections, Trans-African
  • Knowledge, Time and Futures of Super(s)heroes.

    by Emeka Okereke

    Is it possible to think from that silence (the silence created by coloniality of knowledge), to undo the colonial differences that “time” contributed to make and contributes to maintain?1 For well over two weeks, the cyberspace has been in a state of frenzy following the latest release of Marvel comics’ blockbuster superhero movie: Black Panther. What is it that makes this film different from...

    February 23, 2018
    Comments 0
    Africa, Essays, Post-Colonial Discourse, reflections
  • “Water No Get Enemy”: A Thing or Two About Running.

    by Emeka Okereke

    I am in a different mood today. So I am going to write about running. But first, let me say that this post is not about grandiose achievements. It is about little steps. I have been running for months now. Although I cannot yet call myself a serious runner, I have learnt a thing or two about my body and mind since I took...

    February 9, 2018
    Comments 0
    Berlin, Essays, Recounts, reflections, Uncategorized
  • San Francisco: Back and Forth Across Place and Time

    by Emeka Okereke

    It’s been about ten days since I flew across the ocean and backward in time from Paris to San Francisco. It was a beautiful stress-free journey, one that put my anxieties for long-distance flights at ease. For some reason, everyone was particularly nice towards me. From the Airport in Paris through London Heathrow and the flight attendants of the long-haul flights all the way...

    November 5, 2017
    Comments 0
    culture, Essays, Recounts, reflections
  • Poetics of Location: Beyond “Africa Focus” of the Paris Art Fair 2017

    by Emeka Okereke

    Version  fraiçaise traduite par Janine Gaelle In the train from Paris to Berlin, I reflected on the events of the previous days. It was the last weekend of March 2017 and the Parisian art world was busy. This year, Paris decided to jump on the bandwagon of one of the most fashionable rave: the renewed focus on the African continent and its artists. The events, grouped under...

    April 18, 2017
    Comment 1
    Aesthetics, Africa, Amsterdam, Art, Art Fair, artists, colonisation, Contemporary Art, culture, Emeka Okereke, Essays, Exhibition, Paris, Post-Colonial Discourse, reflections, Social Change, Social Intervention, Trans-African
  • On Permanently Temporary Lives: Reflections on Somolu/Bariga – Lagos

    by Emeka Okereke

    In the first quarter of 2016, I made an off-handed decision to find some semblance of coordination in the otherwise chaotic over-the-place kind of life I have led for a long time. This decision could easily have been inspired by the sheer weariness from answering questions like “where are you based?” that often serve as openers to conversations. Not that it mattered much what...

    January 1, 2017
    Comments 0
    Africa, Bariga, Contemporary Art, Emeka Okereke, Essays, Lagos, somolu

Quote of the day

"Confrontation with history might enable us to escape its conditioning"

Wole Soyinka

Post-colonial and post-racial reflections

February 29, 2020

In Search of The Collective

In beginning this reflection about the collective, I have, ringing at the back of my head, an Igbo saying:...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
July 10, 2018

Is Amoeba Shapeless, or is Shapelessness a Shape?

I want to begin this reflection by taking some memory-steps back to my high school days when I was...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
February 23, 2018

Knowledge, Time and Futures of Super(s)heroes.

Is it possible to think from that silence (the silence created by coloniality of knowledge), to undo the colonial...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
April 18, 2017

Poetics of Location: Beyond “Africa Focus” of the Paris Art Fair ...

Version  fraiçaise traduite par Janine Gaelle In the train from Paris to Berlin, I reflected on the events of the...

by Emeka Okereke
Comment 1

Borders, Movement & Trans-Africanism

July 10, 2018

Is Amoeba Shapeless, or is Shapelessness a Shape?

I want to begin this reflection by taking some memory-steps back to my high school days when I was...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
April 18, 2017

Poetics of Location: Beyond “Africa Focus” of the Paris Art Fair ...

Version  fraiçaise traduite par Janine Gaelle In the train from Paris to Berlin, I reflected on the events of the...

by Emeka Okereke
Comment 1
December 9, 2014

Movement is the Word

Sometime ago, I came across Mo Ibrahim’s keynote address at the Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture in Tshwane, South Africa....

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
November 24, 2014

A Border Philosophy

I was in conversation with a friend, breaking down thoughts around the question of borders. My point of deperture was...

by Emeka Okereke
Comment 1
July 1, 2013

Reflections on “Return to N’djamena”

We have just returned from N’djamena after a very intense but super exciting 12 days. As some of you may...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
January 3, 2013

Discussing Aesthetics in The Trans-African Project

Reality can be synthesized I am sitting in a moderately furnished apartment, in the living room precisely. There is a flower...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
October 7, 2012

Diary of a Border-Bieng – Libreville Gabon

This morning, I woke up at some few minutes after 5.am. My head was pounding with a slight headache...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
June 26, 2012

Traversing From West to East

Traveling has been a very important aspect of my existence. More so because it represents that phenomenon by which everything...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 4

Remarkable Encounters

February 9, 2018

“Water No Get Enemy”: A Thing or Two About Running.

I am in a different mood today. So I am going to write about running. But first, let me...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
November 5, 2017

San Francisco: Back and Forth Across Place and Time

It’s been about ten days since I flew across the ocean and backward in time from Paris to San...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
October 24, 2016

Africa: A new game of “Scrabble”

We are in Amsterdam. We have been invited in the context of the 5th edition of the Unseen Photo...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
June 1, 2015

Once Upon a Time in Cold Berlin – Part 2

Before I delve into the reason that prompted a return to this subject, it is imperative that I continue...

by Emeka Okereke
Comment 1
December 29, 2012

Lagos to Accra on ABC Transport

Where will I begin this one? It’s a few days after Christmas and the days are rushing towards the...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 5
January 11, 2012

Sao Tome: Island of Greens and Decay

Sao Tomé. Until only a few days ago this Island has been somewhat of a miniscule dot on the...

by Emeka Okereke
Comments 0
January 6, 2011

Addis Foto Fest , a Successful Strategy

As I am still on the move, I want to quickly share my experience so far of Addis and...

by Emeka Okereke
Comment 1

The Arthur

Emeka Okereke

Emeka Okereke

I am an Igbo-Nigerian visual artist and writer who lives and works between Lagos and Berlin, moving from one to the other on a frequent basis. Check bio here: http://emekaokereke.com/biography

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Recent Posts

February 29, 2020

In Search of The Collective

March 28, 2019

A Glimpse of Chennai, and its Photo Biennale (Part 1)

February 7, 2019

Seeing in the Eye: On Photography and the Gaze

musings in the in-between spaces of socio-cultural conflations

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