Impacting Positively

Yitschaq Abia  Some years back when my teacher, Professor Obododinma Oha, mentioned the idea of a photo essay, I was fascinated about the art. In my own little way I did try to learn the art but it was difficult especially since I had no professional tutor. I would go around taking pictures with VSCO Cam and try to tell a story but it didn't come natural to me, I knew it was lacking in a lot of areas. To me, literature is more than a round piece of cotton wool capable of adopting all art. It is like a foster parent in the world of humanities.  Critiquing the works of Abia Yitzhak a popular African photographer has opened new avenues of critical thinking for me. It has become obvious that man, no matter what he does, is constantly telling a story for an audience he may never meet.    Spontaneous with a huge dose of dexterity, this photographer tells 'migrating stories' of the African soul. This is exactly what I mean: His works ar...

Binogun Winifred, that name most likely doesn't sound Yoruba to most people. 90 % of the time, people assume I'm either Igbo or someone from the South and my accent really doesn't help matters. My Yoruba is on a C6 grade and to crown it, I don't look Yoruba. This does not mean that I'm not proud of my tribe even though some people have made that accusation a number of times. Truth is, I'm Ilaje, not home but away.   I got this description from a distant family member who asked me that question when we first met. She went "Ki wo je? Ilaje home or away?" I didn't want to risk saying home because to begin with, I can't even properly articulate all the phonemes in the language. Over the years, I've come to realize that one cannot stay away from home for long. No matter how far we go, we return to the starting point because it is an inexpugnable part of identity.  In order to be a good Ilaje Away, I decided to learn my oriki. Trust me, nothi...