ode to youthful daredevils
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Ode to Youthful Daredevils, is a site specific installation at Museum Belvédère by The Anarchist Citizenship at Noorderlicht Photo Festival 2020
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Ode to Youthful Daredevils looks into the concept of the nation state in postcolonial Somaliland (East Africa). Established in 1991, The Republic of Somaliland is a self-declared autonomous state located in the present-day northwestern Somalia.
This installation offers a glimpse into how young Somalilanders shape their sense of youth culture and popular culture through fashion, attitude, friendship and globalization. Set in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland where young people push the envelop of the strict public code of conduct to forget their sorrows, follow their curiosity and exhale their enthusiasm into the streets of the city. This installation showcases the self determined ways, in which youthful daredevils narrate their own story to the world. Each image is carefully constructed without the promise of false representation and created in close collaboration with young people deciding on their poses, locations, backgrounds, clothing and style. By centralizing the collage aesthetics and layered style of dress that is common in Somaliland, The Anarchist Citizenship zooms into the richness of Somali textile culture, dress and attitudes that shape the visual language of the country.
The Anarchist Citizenship is initiated by Amal Alhaag & me and is a collaboration with Somali artists, thinkers, poets.
The Anarchist Citizenship thanks: Muna, Fadumo, Farhiyo, Warda, Hyatt, Balqiis, Khalid, Maidhane, Hanan, Abdi & Ayaan
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