22 May

Nana’s Kitchen

Aaron Philander

Long gallery: 26.06.25 - 31.07.25

In my work, I engage with coloured identity, specifically the reclamation of pride in my colouredness. Having attended a privileged, predominantly white primary school and being surrounded by white groups of friends, I felt I lost my sense of colouredness. This discomfort of being pulled in two directions of not being white enough or not being coloured enough, forced me to act in certain ways to cope and fit in. Having to perform a kind of whiteness to fit in, but then evidently feeling a sense of guilt and resentment towards my otherness. This grappling of switching between performative modes leaves me with problems I am constantly trying to solve and questions about my identity which I'm trying to answer. I have had to question myself and acknowledge that not only have I grown up differently to many other coloured people, given the many privileges I have been afforded, which is difficult to reconcile. It is frustrating to admit that my opportunities are partially due to being surrounded by white groups of people, and I imagine that many would find this contestable. These issues have forced me to reflect on past experiences and dig deep to discover what colouredness means to me.

The materials I use are embedded in personal experiences. These materials hold the essence of where my colouredness lies, as most of the materials are found in my shed. They hold memories of my coloured family; these rusted weathered materials have an obscure beauty that is difficult to appreciate at first glance, which echoes some of my feelings around heritage and identity. I use found materials located in my shed or hidden spaces around the house. Whether it be the rusted tools that have been sitting in the shed or the weathered relics that were found in my nana’s cupboards, when these materials are reconstructed into something new, they bring a sense of home into the exhibition space and my understanding of what colouredness is.

The exhibition is titled Nana’s Kitchen because it evokes the heart of where my understanding of colouredness was nurtured—through the everyday warmth, chaos, and richness of life in coloured households. My nana’s home, like many others I grew up in, was a place of sensory memory: the smell of cooking, the singing that filled the rooms, the layered voices of family gathering, the laughter and the worn-down furniture. These spaces, though weathered, held a beauty rooted in community, resilience, and love. Nana’s Kitchen brings that sense of home into the gallery, grounding my work in the memory of those lived experiences and honouring the textured, complex identity I carry forward.

Ruby Wilson