“In essence, the idea that images are made to awaken the unconscious suggests that visual experiences have the potential to touch us in ways we don't always understand.”
Exhibitions
Traditions Contemporaines - Collective Show
Finalist Ellipse Project - Contemporary Prize
Hotel Maison Rouge, Cotonou, Benin, 2024
Resilience Unveiled - Solo exhibition
The SocialHubBerlin Gallery, Berlin, 2024
Soulography - Solo exhibition
Concept Store/Gallery "La case Paulette", Berlin, 2021
Grenzenlos: Kolonialismus, Industrie und Widerstand - Collective Show
Museum der Arbeit, Hamburg, 2021
Grenzüberschreitungen - Collective Show
Urban exhibition exhibited in 39 cities in Germany, 2020
Another one.
Artistic Photo Project
Photo Negatives, Chinese blue ink on canvas, printed in Paris
West Africa (Benin)
2023-2024
The concept is to highlight the authentic charm of analog pictures with a distinctive grandient and colorful "archive touch."
When images are paired with language, the narrative challenges what is seen and told. It's akin to an allegorical tale, a vivid story perceived with eyes wide open.
Exploring various art forms and creative outlets in recent years and months, I've been eager to preserve my culture and traditions, much like my passion for visual arts. I've dedicated time to capturing what I call "Reshaping Roots: recalling memories with fantasy, using photographs to document and revisit memories.
Another one isn't only a visual experimental experience but is solely about the subject matter; it's more about reminiscing about the familiar aspects of my country and my culture, where traditions symbolize gatherings, festivities, and spirituality.
One of them and the one I got the closest to my origins is Vodùn.
Vodún or vodúnsínsen is an African traditional religion practiced by the Aja, Ewe, and Fon peoples of Benin, Togo, Ghana, and Nigeria. Practitioners are commonly called vodúnsɛntó or Vodúnisants. Vodún teaches the existence of a supreme creator divinity, under whom are lesser spirits called vodúns.
Vodun represents a distinctive form of expression that embraces the idea of "artistic unfinishedness," allowing for continuous development and adaptation. Vodun art is not exclusive or unattainable but widespread and sacred. It is intricately linked to the Vodun native system, known for its openness to change and integration of diverse influences from various sources.
Let me tell you more about my research on the power of story telling over generations.
Resilience Unveiled
Photo Reportage - assignment - National Archives of Benin
B&W, Analog Photography, printed in Berlin
West Africa (Ghana, Togo, Benin)
2023-2024
Experience the captivating journey of the vibrant tapestry of the Black community in Berlin, intertwining their stories of struggle, resilience, and triumph with the present and the past where lie revealed ancestral roots from the source of Slave Trade in the old Dahomey Kingdom (Benin).
Resilience Unveiled is the portrait of the Black experience, transcending geographical and temporal boundaries to forge connections that resonate deeply.
As a commissioned photographer for the national archives of Benin, I steped into a world where each photograph is a window into the complexities of the Afro-descendant narrative, revealing moments of joy, pain, and perseverance.
With a raw analog camera aesthetic, I enjoy capturing emotions, weaving together narratives that speak volumes.
Most of the photographs from the series were taken during Vodún rituals, when I was among five different local Etnies and communities, traveling and recognizing a few.
Beautiful pictures telling vibrant stories, these black and white series (“We can’t breathe”, “Resilience unveiled’) tend to explore the parallels between the Afro-diaspora community and their roots.
From their civic rights activism in Berlin and the cultural heritage of Ouidah in Benin, my lens navigates through history, tradition, and contemporary existence.
For centuries, humanity has drawn strength and resilience from the stories preserved across civilizations. These archives shape our understanding of identity, grounding us in shared histories. They connect past and present, offering continuity in a changing world.
“We can’t breathe”
Photo Documentary - Assignment
with #BLM Berlin
B&W, Analog Photography, analog prints selfmade in Berlin
Europe (Berlin, Paris)
2020-2021
Message of protest from the Afro-Berlin community
The murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police on 25 May 2020 sent a shock of anger and sadness around the world, particularly for the international Black community. During the lockdown, there was a question as to whether demonstrations against systemic racism and police violence would even be allowed.
In an organic, vital, and spontaneous response, Nella Aguessy addressed the Black community of Berlin via social networks to transform this anger into a cathartic energy.
“The purpose of this project is to use photography as a medium to express feelings”. It is also an opportunity to give a voice to a community that is all too often underrepresented.
Through black and white portraits, in analog medium format film (120 mm), the idea is to reflect and mourn during the photo shoot. After an exchange with the participants, the subjects were asked to pose on a black background under a spotlight. The signs, written by the subjects themselves, testify to the messages that Berlin's Afro-European community wishes to convey to the world: “We can’t Breathe”.
Neben Saison
Photo Project
Europe (Mallorca, Portugal)
Experimental colors, analog prints selfmade in Berlin
Analog Photography
2020
NEBENSAISON
When the high season no longer exists.
The Nebensaison series takes us on a journey to Mallorca and Portugal through landscapes and moments captured in pastel tints and citrus colors. The photographic project, carried out for over a year during the time of pandemic used exclusively expired photo film to enhance the spectrum of time visually. It documents tourist sites deprived of their visitors during the successive lockdowns in Europe.
A documentary project that notably presents photographs of Arrifana, a former fishermen's beach in the south of Portugal, has become a top destination for surfing.
I find calm, clean, and authentic natural areas in Portugal and capture the wild landscapes and the local surfing community.
I seem to be the only witness to the new dialogue between nature and its inhabitants. The clichés show the intimate atmosphere of local life, the strength of nature in its raw state, and the unusual calm imposed by the crisis.
Booking Inquiry
© Isabelle knispel
The entity Bigmotha Studio is a creative studio aiming to conceptualize the best suitable format and idea for your visual needs.
Each inquiry is handled with care and detail, Whether for a project requiring documentation for a public or private organization, for employees needing a new, more authentic, personal portrait, or for press publication purposes. Bigmotha Studio, creates bespoke portraits for Authors, Children's Book Writers, Academic Researchers, Musicians, Visual Artists, and Entrepreneurs.
A focus on the subject in a setting of empathy, compassion, and empowerment. The aim is to meet your expectations while being a source of inspiration.
Bigmotha Studio is working together with companies to discuss social diversity, inclusive topics with images, and the unique power of Art. A process helping teams to evoke emotions and memories beyond their conscious awareness. This connection between team awareness and Art reveals how visual experiences can access hidden depths of the human psyche. Art becomes a medium to express what words often cannot.
Contact Bigmotha here and tell us about your projects.
