An exhibition of photography by Lamar Francois.
Colourful portraits accompany ‘Old Time Sayings’. These are aphorisms and idioms shared by older members of Nottingham’s African-Caribbean community.
During the UK’s second COVID-19 lockdown, poet Panya Banjoko ran 1 to 1 workshops over the telephone with a group of older people. The group transcribed & explained a number of sayings, some in Jamaican Patwa.
The contributors were Bettina Wallace, Victoria Williams, Ethel Anderson, Merlita Bryan, Louise Garvey and Pitman Browne. The exhibition includes an exploration of Jamaican vernacular by Panya Banjoko.
The project was part of City Arts’ ‘Words of Wisdom’ programme.
About the artists
Lamar Francois
Lamar has been a photographer for the last decade.
He thinks of photography as both an art, and a science, having studied Mathematical Physics.
Photography is an outlet for Lamar. It has helped him gain confidence and manage effects of Asperger’s Syndrome and anxiety.
With the help of the Princes Trust he has established a business, ‘Pictured by Lamar’. Through this he shares the joy of creative expression with a range of prints and merchandise.
Panya Banjoko
Panya is a multi-award winning poet. She co-ordinates a Black Writers Network and is patron for Nottingham UNESCO City of Literature.
Her collection of work includes, ‘Some Things’, published 2018. Her work appears in numerous anthologies such as award-winning Dawn of the Unread, 2016. Her poem ‘One of a Kind’, was commended in the Writing East Midlands Aurora Poetry Competition (2017). Her poem ‘They and Them’ featured in an exhibition by artist, academic and critic Keith Piper at the Beaconsfield Gallery Vauxhall, London.
Panya has received numerous awards including: Women in the Arts Poetry Award for Outstanding Achievement in 2008; the Black Achievers Culture, Music, and Arts Award in 2017; and the Notts Inspirational Women’s Award in 2019.
About Words of Wisdom
City Arts’ Words of Wisdom project offered people aged 55+ a chance to take part in writing and poetry workshops. Run by professional writers, the workshops took place in community venues across Nottingham.
The project was supported by Nottingham City of Literature & Nottingham City Libraries. It was funded by Arts Council England and the Baring Foundation.
