A while ago I interview my friend Jane Odartey on this blog, and since then her accessory and clothing shop, Mawusi, has grown a lot, so here is an updated version of the interview I did with her:
Jane Odartey is one of my friends from college. She is also a photographer, poet, and funny, too. Here is my interview I did with her:
1) Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Thanks so much for featuring me on your wonderful blog, Reese!
Home used to be Ghana, then I moved to NY because my Ma had made it her new home. I value simple things, like strong laughter, good friends who would tell you about the spinach between your teeth, and people who would laugh with you even when the crowd around you look down their noses at your “lack of civilization.” I love life only because of the people I love. I also find that icecreams and tall glasses of milkshakes are a necessity.
2) When and why did you become interested in poetry and photography?
I used to write poetry when I was bad. I wrote it as an apology to my mother. It felt proper because I came to know poetry in a sandwich of fear; my sixth
grade teacher made sure of that. In my junior year of college I met Prof. Grace Schulman. She convinced me that I ought to give poetry a chance.
Growing up, we took pictures, like, once a year. There was always a need to look perfect for the pictures. It was a real fuss. When I got my very first camera in high school, I wanted to take pictures of things that didn’t matter. I wanted them as they were without any preening. It was, however, in college that I realized my love for the art. I was working on majoring in Business Management and all that calculus was weighing me down so I thought a semester of Basic Photography, would be some sort of therapy; it proved to me more than that.
Read the rest here!
Sherese Francis: Futuristically Ancient 