Before the Christian missionaries descended on the continent to save the eternal souls of the heathen savages, as they would have it, Africa had gotten along pretty well with its own set of faiths and religious practices. These folk religions often blended deity worship with shamanistic rituals that tapped into superstition and the supernatural, but in the post-colonial era much of the details surrounding them has been lost. As Kenyan artist Jim Chuchu came to realise, while literature and imagery on the indigenous pre-Christian religions of places such as Scandinavia, India and the Far East was readily available, that wasn’t the case when it came to Africa’s old gods.
In the photographic series Pagans, Chuchu addresses the topic from both a historical and artistic standpoint; the artist has imagined a future-past in which these deities are once more central to African life, while at the same time trying to reconstruct the old rituals and beliefs that have survived in books or in practice in isolated pockets of the continent. His figures are presented in stark monochrome; worshippers writhe and sway in supplication or joyous celebration, gods themselves manifest as mysterious and charismatic visitations. Pagans is being exhibited at Mariane Ibrahim Gallery, Seattle, from 7 May to 13 June.
Jim Chuchu, Pagans 11, 2014
Jim Chuchu, Pagans 14, 2014
Jim Chuchu, Pagans 9, 2014
Jim Chuchu, Pagans 15, 2014
Jim Chuchu, Pagans 12, 2014
