02 | MAYA CAMPBELL

The Brixton I remember as a child in the early 2000's is extremely different to the place I grew up in as a teenager, and on top of that, my family all remember so many more places that no longer exist due to the process of gentrification that began in the 90s. It definitely felt like a more tightly-knit community, there were more opportunities for local artists to set up stalls in the Ritzy Cinema every weekend which I used to go to with my Grandma, A&C Continental Delicatessen under the arches, I also know many people who were displaced when Wayland House was demolished in the early 2010's and weren't able to stay in the area - these are just a few examples of how the area has changed, and I feel it's important to recognise that this process of social cleansing is still underway because I've heard some people use the term "post-gentrification" when speaking about Brixton, which diverts attention from important grassroots campaigns that are very much alive like #FightTheTower and the very special community that still exists here. This all being said, it's my home and I feel really privileged to have grown up in a place that is multicultural, creative and has a historical spirit of resistance.

We initially started Prajñā during lockdown as a way to share our love of books and focus on powerful messages that were borne out of past political movements, we had been thinking a lot about the Black Power movement in the 60's and 70's and the rigorous self-education that the figureheads of that movement undertook, and then brought this energy to their communities, empowering through knowledge and self-determination from the ground up. We just wanted to source and distribute books that provide a counter-narrative to the Western-centric voices and ideologies we are taught to receive as truth from the moment we're in school, I particularly really suffered from the dehumanising way the curriculum taught us "Black History" in school with no emphasis on the very present legacy of colonialism in the UK and a lot of the books we source represent a myriad of complex, diverse voices who provide visions of alternative futures.

I was filming one of the audiovisual works for Folklore Imaginary in Nepal on Super 8, I was there for a two-month long residency during July and August and the show launched towards the end of September, so it was quite a quick turnaround to get the film developed and if there was an issue with the footage I wouldn't have been able to reshoot it in time - I was quite tense but everything came together in time! It was a really special experience working with the team at 87 Gallery and the curator Becky Gee, who really ensured that the environment for the works was as I envisioned it - the walls were painted dark green, a wall was built so there could be a screening room for the two audiovisual pieces, Prajñā Bookshop had a curated selection in the gallery shop - as I work in a few different mediums, seeing the sculptures alongside the video works and photographs helped to consolidate the recurring themes and motifs within everything I do, I also didn't have a studio at the time so until the install I hadn't actually seen all my pieces together... My family came up from London for the launch and were shocked at the amount of work that I had done that year, because it's always tucked away!

Although my practice undoubtedly engages with Britain's colonial past and present, especially with the carceral spaces of the UK's museums and collections, it is only the starting point and organically, I end up drawing upon a range of intimate, cultural and mythical influences that all contain symbolic links. For instance, the audiovisual piece 'Effigy for a Black Soldier' explores memories of my estranged father through a sonic reworking of the folk song Wayfaring Stranger, produced by sound artist Cil and multiinstrumentalist Buster Woodruff-Bryant, it also touches on his strong Christian faith and time serving in the British army. I refrain from making any resolute or solid political statements about my father in this work, instead reflecting the in-betweenness of being a first-generation immigrant trying to start a life in the UK whilst being viewed by family back home in Jamaica as rich and wealthy, with mounting pressures and alienation on both sides. To represent this image of my father I built a cross by the shore in the UK, erecting a military ghillie suit on top of it and the piece records what is essentially, an effigy or totem to this mythologised image of my father. I think the personal is inherently political, but I am drawing from my own experiences and transmuting them into universal or archetypal mythologies that are hopefully recognisable and add to contemporary representations meditating on the complexity of race, identity and cultural heritage in the UK as a result of migration and the British Empire.

2022 was my first year after completing my BA, so I said yes to absolutely everything, which I don't regret at all but some weeks I was working every day during the week and closing at the bar where I work, which just isn't sustainable! I've reduced some of the bar and assistant work I was previously doing to leave more time for freelance artist educator projects as they come up and have also started taking a clay night-class as I want to develop some skills in sculpting before I make some new work. I think it can be easy and subtle to fall into the headspace of feeling that you need to be constantly producing and sharing new work, but I'm realising my natural rhythm is slower and that I still have a lot more I want to learn, so I'm leaning into that.

Really happy to be showing films 'Protector of the Children' and 'Effigy for a Black Soldier' at Waiting Room Film Festival on February 2nd, which were created in collaboration with sound artist CIL, multi-instrumentalist Buster Woodruff-Bryant and sitarist and composer Tommy Khosla - they haven't been screened in London yet and were apart of 'Folklore Imaginary' at 87 Gallery in Hull. Prajñā Bookshop's website will be launching on the 1st of February with lots of new, specially curated titles which Buster and I are really excited for, after taking a short break last year.

Memories, Dreams, Reflections by Carl Jung is a book that's very close to my heart and has really influenced my understanding of universal archetypes, dreams, visions and Eastern and Western philosophy. Jung's emphasis on leaning into the unconscious and intuitive knowledge instead of only relying on rational and empirical modes of thought definitely spoke to me and confirmed a lot of what I had already been feeling in words.