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Multidisciplinary Kenyan British visual artist, Phoebe Boswell, discusses how her expatriate upbringing afforded her a rare freedom to see the world without prejudices. It was only later as an adult when she became acutely aware of how others might see her through the lens of race and gender. Here, Phoebe shares how her art has allowed her space to explore both her personal identity, as well as collective identities - poetically revealing and opening up for discussion the complex nature of being.
“I grew up as an expatriate, very much feeling the freedom of being a person of the world, a citizen of the world, not caring too much about race or class or gender—which was an amazing childhood in a way, but I also didn’t really acknowledge or appreciate how the world perhaps would see me as a woman and as a black person. My work becomes a place where I can define myself in terms that are mine, not terms that are placed upon me.”
– Phoebe Boswell
These videos are part of our featured series, The Future Is Hers, celebrating the power of women and girls around the world.
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