We are one

"I am deeply saddened and sensitive when I face any situation of imbalance. Usually, these are the kinds of situations and events that trigger the process of creation within me.

Racism, injustice, propaganda, slavery, colonialism, neo-colonialism, imperialism.

I approach these terms in a metaphorical fashion. It is about seeking out visual strategies that enable me to express specific aspects of the influences and impacts of neo-colonialism and imperialism, particularly on the African continent, and on the world in general. 

As a matter of fact, these two terms (neo-colonialism and imperialism) literally share a common denominator, i.e. domination. And to dominate is to submit, to asphyxiate. I am particularly sensitive to the issues and events that evoke this type of situation.

In a situation of asphyxia, the only way to survive is to resist and seek ways and means to regain affirmation, balance and oxygen, vital to keep existing. This is basically the metaphor I base my approach on. Therefore, my deep-seated motivation is to focus on seeking poetic strategies that allow for the reaffirmation and verification of hidden cultural, historical, urban, social, economic and geographical heritages.

The idea behind We are one is to metaphorically show an experiment which expresses the nature of tensions, communications and resistances related to the human relationships. The metaphor behind the hands movement suggests that, in order to reinvent humanism, we need horizontality in our daily social, cultural and political lives."

LucFosther Diop in a statement to PLATFORM:VB (October 2013)