John Hansard Gallery is proud to be working in partnership with the artist Chin We to present IFE NKILI, an annual Black women’s arts festival celebrating the beauty of Black culture, identity and heritage.
‘Ife nkili’ is a phrase from the Igbo tribe in Nigeria meaning ‘beauty to behold’. The pioneering arts festival seeks to deconstruct the perceptions of Black women in art, photography, music, film and literature as passive by bringing seventeen Black women artists to the forefront. The film features a selection of photographers, visual artists, creatives, creators and performers in one continuous, uninterrupted, seamlessly beautiful festival of artistry, music and expression.
The film explores identity, diversity and inclusion, representation, climate change, LGBTQIA+, family, Black Lives Matter, spirituality, Black Muslim women, females in music etc. IFE NKILI provides a space to celebrate, showcase and honour what black women do. IFE NKILI‘s mission is to uplift the voices of creativity of Black women, reminding us all how Black women and the art they produce are for the community, society, and the world at large.
Please note: This film contain partial nudity and is suitable for mature audiences. The film also contains sequences with imagery and sustained flashing lights that may affect those with photosensitive epilepsy.
There will also be an online Artist Talk, involving Chin We, photographer Elsie Kibue-Ngare, and Serena Clayton from The Black Women’s Project on Tuesday 15 March at 6pm. Find out more and book your place here.
About the artist:
Chin We is an award-winning visual artist and filmmaker. She is fascinated by humans and capturing people’s essence. In Chin We’s words, “I adore the human experience, we are all that we have.” We’s work explores themes of social/cultural identity, culture, representation, heritage and the African diaspora through the medium of portrait photography, film, and mixed-media.