As part of the column ‘Women by Women: A Shared Vision,’ created to expand on the theme of our Global open call, we spoke with Sarah Waiswa, founder of African Women in Photography (AWiP)—an organization and community that creates opportunities for African female and non-binary artists working in documentary and fine art photography. AWiP fosters connections with publishers and editors while also supporting the exhibition and publication of their work. We discussed their lived realities, the collaboration with the END Fund, the importance of community, and the power of embracing your authentic self as an artist.
1. How was your project born?
AWP was founded during the pandemic. I felt a strong need to connect with other artists, to understand how the pandemic had affected their work and personal lives, and to use that time to build a community that could hold space for each other, but also create a platform that amplified the voices and stories of women and non-binary photographers from Africa.
2. What are the challenges and prejudices that you encountered in your work, and how did you overcome them?
Challenges are an ongoing part of any journey. We consistently face hurdles like limited resources for programming and administration. However, we ve found that by leveraging what is available particularly with digital tools and focusing on relationship-building, we are making steady progress.
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3. You launched an open call to share the stories of African women and girls affected by NTDs. Would you tell us more about this project?
Our partnership with the END Fund had two primary objectives:
- Storytelling Through Photography: To capture and share the realities of women and girls affected by Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs).
- Elevating Overlooked Perspectives: To provide a platform for African women and non-binary photographers to showcase stories from NTD-impacted countries through their unique perspectives, highlighting often-overlooked narratives.
4. What does it mean to you to create space for African women and non-binary individuals within the creative community?
Given photography s male-dominated history and the long-standing tradition of stories being told about Africa rather than by Africans, creating a space for the African female and non-binary gaze is crucial. It s a significant step toward countering historical narratives and diversifying perspectives. We believe our stories are important and deserve to be heard.
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5. You also founded African Cityzens, a reality encouraging trans-city movement and spatial exchanges through photography. Can you elaborate on this?
African Cityzens is a project I co-founded in 2015 with my good friend and fellow artist, Joel Lukhovi. We started it after discussing the difficulties Africans face when traveling across the continent due to visa and access issues. We wanted to spark a dialogue about accessibility, movement, space, and identity, and chose to use public transport to travel from country to country to explore the possibilities.
6. Do you have any advice for African women and non-binary photographers who are just starting out?
My advice for African women and non-binary photographers who are just starting out is to be fearless. To tell stories about their communities, and continue to explore and experiment with their craft.
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7. What’s an upcoming project you are working on?
Currently, my primary focus is completing the END commission. However, I am also interested in producing another exhibition featuring members of the AWP community.
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8. Since everything we do at PhotoVogue is rooted in empowerment and collaboration with entities that share our values, is there a women-focused organization you’d like to spotlight or give a shout-out to?
We greatly admire the work of the Woza Sisi Collective, particularly their recent efforts in speaking up and defending their work and women s creative labor in general.
