Where my head goes ii | Ibi Ori Lo ii

Ibi Ori Lo ii continues my exploration of destiny, direction and the relationship between the body and the forces that shape our lives. For this part, I moved from balloons to feathers. The feathers I used were not specially chosen or bought for the work. I gathered them from the street, where I found them after they had been carried and left behind by the wind. There was something about that that stayed with me. They were light enough to be moved by something we cannot see, yet their movement was visible. That became the starting point for Part Two. I began to think about how similar this is to the way we move through life. We make plans and believe we are in control of our direction, but life can shift us in ways we never expected. Sometimes we resist it. Sometimes we pause. And sometimes we simply accept the direction in which we are being carried. This time, I use a woman as the subject, with feathers placed around and across her face, transforming the head into something beyond the physical. Her gestures and positions become part of the language of the work. In some photographs she appears to be moving forward; in others she is still, looking inward or simply allowing herself to be where she is. The feathers, like the balloons in the first part, are fragile. A small movement of air can change their direction. I use this fragility to speak about the uncertainty of life and the things that influence us beyond what we can see. The work is rooted in the Yoruba idea of Ori, but Part Two is also a reflection of my own experiences. I am interested in that point where planning becomes acceptance; where I stop asking why life did not happen exactly as I imagined and begin to recognise that the path I am on is still part of my story. I use dark skin, fashion, the female body and the landscape to create these images, allowing the natural environment to become part of the narrative. The sea, earth, wind and feathers all become connected to the body. For me, this part of the work is about direction, stillness and acceptance. The balloons in Part One were carried by the wind. The feathers in Part Two are carried by the same invisible force and perhaps we are too.