Could you say a bit more about how your experience on GPISH has influenced your practice and vice versa?油
Nabila Walji is a second-year student on the油Graduate Programme油in Islamic Studies油and Humanities油(GPISH)油and油has recently opened her first exhibitionUnBelonging油in my Fatherlandwith Calgarys Arts Commons.油Here she talks about her油combined academic-artistic photographic and writing practice, which油explores油identity, culture, discrimination and community, with a focus on her油partly油East African heritage.油
Please could油you tell油us油a bit about your exhibition油UnBelonging油in油my油Fatherland and the subject matter it covers?油
The exhibition is油about evoking that sense that I think everyone feels to differing degrees,油of油not belonging in a place that they’re from, or that they live in油油and about that universal search for a home.油But on a more specific level, it’s about my own journey of being a Canadian,油who always grew up thinking that they’re part South Asian and part East African, but in油going to油my油East African fatherland油finding that un-belonging could be found in the place that油I油thought was油my油homeland as well.油I think, for any diasporic or migratory peoples, including IsmailisAdherents of a branch of Shi’i Islam that considers Ismail, the eldest son of the Shi’i Imam Ja平far al-畊diq (d. 765), as his successor., there’s a huge resonance, in terms of the story that the exhibition is telling, because many of us have been migratory or have had to move.
What prompted you to start the project or start asking those questions?油
It comes partly from my youth, of油being a person of colour in a Canadian society, where many people are told油油whether they’re born there, they’re first, second, third油or油fourth generation油油they’re still told:油go back to where you came from. And油so油I guess for me, subtly油or not so subtly, it made me油ask:油where is that place? And I found that it is kind of elusive, that there’s no actual origin point.油The next layer then comes from my own experiences living and working in East Africa and reflecting on my positionality油in that society油when I was there. And the complexity of being what they call Asian, or what they call Indian, in that society and finding that, even if we’re fifth generation there, we still don’t really belong there either.油The last part of this question would be just having an interest in documenting my family history in the area.油Once I lived in Nairobi, I discovered that there’s this very vibrant, creative community that isn’t stuck in silos, where art belongs in one category and social impact belongs in another.油They’re engaged with their society油through their creativity. Through them, I was able to learn how to document these places.
Could you say a bit about your combined academic, artistic, photographic and writing practice?油
I always was a writer, and I did photography as a hobby. I got more into street photography during my undergraduate studies living in the very vibrant city of Montreal. I integrated these to some extent in my anthropological studies, because it provided that space to do visual anthropology and explore the image, and combine art and academics in writing through ethnography. It started to more concretely bridge in my internship with油Aga Khan油Foundation (East Africa)油in Nairobi, because I was put in a communications position and油was油required to take pictures油and油write. And then油I油met a lot of these creatives油there,油that I mentioned油earlier.油Through GPISH, I realised油I enjoyed the intellectual rigour of the academic world, and the ability to really research an issue.油I’ve realised that there’s space to combine油my artistic practice油with academic油approaches, and油do applied research.油That’s hopefully what I’ll be油pursuing more in my third year,油because I’ve chosen an anthropology programme油at Oxford油that has a lot of experience in visual,油material油and油museum油anthropology. And油so油I’m hoping through engagement with that programme, I’ll be able to find that space and more deeply engage with issues油of油identity and油racism Im interested in.
This idea of applied practice or油applied油research has influenced a lot of my GPISH experience. And a lot of my papers have been about the visual or art.油I’m trying to think of ways to practice油in油this field and to challenge my thinking on it too. GPISH has given me the space to油better油understand racism and discrimination as they relate to the wider questions of culture, identity and development.油Through it, I have gained a much better understanding of the roots of Islamophobia and the systemic油factors油that underlie a lot of the issues in Muslim majority areas. I think I didn’t even appreciate coming in how much more depth I was going to get.油Ive now got油a different layer of understanding on油colonialism and its impact.油I’m looking forward to taking that learning forward with other projects.
My GPISH research油project is油focusing on the idea of place, memory and identity in Nairobi油using my family’s restaurant, which was油an iconic油establishment in油the city.油Im油looking at how,油through people’s memory,油the restaurant represents油cultural heritage in the city.油Theres an image of it in the exhibition:油it’s directly across from the油iconic town油Jamatkhana油in Nairobi.
What do you hope visitors take away from your exhibition?油
UnBelonging油in my Fatherland油is kind of an ode to the Ismaili community and is reflective of many of our experiences. And油so油in that sense, I’m hoping that for people who might have roots in East Africa, they’re looking at it critically.油The exhibition does tell stories about油recognisable油places,油but there is commentary throughout,油on colonialism, racism油and some political issues that challenged me as a Canadian outsider who also was kind of an insider.油I hope油people whose families are from the region or who have heard about it and identify with the region,油also油get to learn about what everyday life is油like, rather than just be too caught up in the nostalgic element of it.油Part of the goal is油also油to counterpoint the ways in which Africa as a continent is usually represented by showing its internal diversity,油focused on this region.油More broadly, I think it is about reflecting on油your own positionality in your societies and thinking through un-belonging, which油stems from racism.
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