In this episode, Qanita Lilla talks with Emebet Belete about her community-driven art projects and her passion for arts education. Emebet shares how her art has been influenced by her youth in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, global travels, and how her art practice has evolved to include large-scale projects which cover pieces of public infrastructure through a process called “yarn storming.”

In this episode, Garth Erasmus, South African artist and musician talks with Qanita Lilla about how the experience of apartheid and forced removals shaped his artistic practice. He talks about navigating a white world and of balancing the urgent need to respond to the trauma of apartheid while cultivating his artistic voice. Sound work and music provided a useful medium toward healing for Garth, and it allowed a means towards embracing an Indigenous Khoisan identity.

Music highlighted in this episode:

Garth Ersamus. “Threnody for the KhoiSan.” Threnody for the KhoiSan, TAL, 2024, #7. Courtesy of the artist

Artist Jega Delisca talks with Qanita Lilla about his portraiture practice and how he makes his sitters feel seen by empathizing with their vulnerability. He talks about the importance of building rapport and trust but also of activating a balanced understanding of Black masculinity. Jega’s artistic practice challenges male emotional blindness and he talks about how he moved from painting portraits of others to opening his apartment as a gallery and becoming vulnerable himself.