“Concepts of Love”, a recently launched podcast hosted by Suzana Sousa and Dana Whabira of Njelele Art Station started as a conversation amongst friends, more from humanity than artistry. The relevance and broadness of the theme prompted them to engage with others and establish an exchange of thoughts and ideas. They are particularly interested in the small things, that are not necessarily apparent, which shape this complex feeling.
Through a series of conversations, they question love and its implications in various realms of life.
“We contemplate history, tradition and popular culture and how they help to shape concepts of love and its expression. We discuss and learn from each other, navigating between the universal and the culturally specific. A process of understanding love as a practice and its plural. With a focus on the African experience, our guests engage with the art world through their work and use it as a conduit to interrogate life, everyday experience and memory. We hope you enjoy these vulnerable and open discussions that address a myriad of issues in an attempt to deconstruct the concept of love. Embark with us on this journey and meet our amazing guests,” writes the team in an official statement to the press.
Launched on the 26th of February, the podcast started with a heartfelt homage to Bisi Silva and her legacy. The episode delves into “The Progress of Love” exhibition she curated in 2012 in collaboration with the Menil Collection and the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts. As a curatorial assistant for the project, Taiye sheds light on the main premise of the show, how different questions were thought through an African point of view and challenged cultural views, such as same-sex relationships or even PDA, public displays of affection. Through her own artwork and practice, she discusses love as a process, as well as themes including history, race and memory reflecting on concepts of love through different forms of manifestation.
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Concepts of Love is available weekly on SoundCloud and njelele.art/radio.
