Adia, Ile de Goree, Senegal, from the series Conversation with the World, 2002

sheet: 22” x 28"
archival inkjet print
Courtesy of the artist

A Conversation With the World, commenced in 1986 beginning with a trip to Kenya where I began photographing and interviewing people I would encounter through the course of a day. Increasingly it became more apparent as the participants responded to a series of 8 questions that there was uniformity in what people felt they needed to survive, how individuals related to the world spiritually, and the bonds individuals feel with their heritage and culture. The revelation is that while we all may have superficial differences each one of us are motivated by our common humanity.

This image of Adia was rendered on the island of Gorée off the coast of Senegal. The Western point of the island is the closest geographical point to the continent of the United States and what many people feel  is the symbolic departure point for slaves coming to the new world. Adia was one of the 1st people I encountered after disembarking on the island. That day we stood in the sand along the footpath near the old Portuguese fort under a large tree with spreading branches and broad leaves. There in the shade she stood while we spoke through an interpreter about her family and her life on the island.

About the Artist