British | Jamaican
I identify as a mixed-race ceramicist and am a fierce, independent woman. I have a mental health condition but I am proud to say I don’t let it define me and I work to maintain it. As someone who struggles with dyslexia I am able to say I am more interested in wanting to grow my academic reading. Dyslexia and my mental health don’t define me but it has helped me realise how determined I am to prove what I can achieve.
I think there needs to be more representatives of ethnic minorities in the arts. There is a lot more representation of ethnic minorities however not many women. As a ceramicist I believe we all have something to say, and express our journeys through art. When I was a teacher assistant at a college one of the students decided to carry out her project of paradise interpreting equality for her. She has a mixed heritage background too and I think a turning point for her was seeing a Black artists exhibition and how powerful and great every voice in the world is. To see someone of ethnic background achieve a solo exhibition and create such powerful reflections was inspiring.
I have loads of role models but I would have to say the late Maya Angelou. Her line ‘still I rise’ keeps me going everyday. In her life, and throughout this poem she rises through all the negative experiences and it empowers me to do the same. My Dad is also a huge role model. He doesn’t pretend to be perfect and is always there when I need him. He has been through mental health struggles in his life too and it took all he had to admit it and to get help. In Jamaican culture they don’t really talk about these topics but he always talks about how we are feeling. My parents told me it was a struggle being an interracial couple in the 80s and early 90s, people used to say ‘are you not worried what your kids will be like’ and would give them looks. However, they looked past peoples ignorance as they knew why they loved each other and what was important, not what other people thought of them. They also say it’s worth it now seeing my sibling and I grow and find our own identities.
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