This platform was conceptualised and designed by artist, curator and writer Nkhensani Mkhari for his residency at M.Bassy Hamburg for the exhibition "Food, Art & Activism: Nourishing Ourselves and Each Other" with Minia Biabiany, CATPC – Cercle d'art des travailleurs de plantation congolaise, Ramata Coulibaly, Binta Diaw, Luiza Prado de O. Martins, Tracey Rose & guests: Luvinsky Atche, Darlène Kassem, Nkhensani Mkhari, Ozoz Sokoh & Magda Tedla.
This platform is meant to be an open source public database for African indigenous plant medicine knowledge. The project was conceptualised based on plant medicine knowledge left behind by the Nkhensani Mkhari's grandmother Tabasi, surrounding community and matriarchs in his family.
Contributing editors
Nkhensani Mkhari
Nkhensani Mkhari b.1994 in Mabopane, Pretoria, South Africa is an artist moving in the interstitial spaces between Joburg, Cape Town, Hamburg, and Magoebaskloof. Mkhari is an artist whose work explores the concept of identity and subjectivity in a unique way. Drawing inspiration from bantu-cosmology and a triadic understanding of being, Mkhari challenges epistemic erasure and traditional notions of personhood. Their work is not simply a reflection of their personal experiences but rather an invitation for viewers to engage with their own understanding of self and the world. Through their art, Mkhari encourages us to consider the complex and interconnected nature of existence. Their work has been recently exhibited at the Oregon Contemporary Center for the Arts curated by Home School, the Fellbach Kleinplastik Triennale, and Goethe Institut.
Ozoz Sokoh
Ozoz Sokoh b.1976 in Warri, Nigeria, lives and works in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada) is a food explorer, educator, budding curator, and Traveler By Plate, for whom "Food Is More Than Eating". In 2009, she began journaling about food on her blog, Kitchen Butterfly. In 2013, she created the #NewNigerianKitchen, developing her philosophy and practice with Nigerian food. Her research and documentation explore the roots of Nigerian and West African cuisine, the impact of West African intellectual contributions to global development from the American South, through the Caribbean to Europe and Latin America, and the connection to the Afro-diaspora. Her ongoing exploration, "Coast to Coast: From West Africa to the World" traces the histories and edible trails of West Africa and its diaspora through ingredients and "commodities" and is documented on Feast Afrique. It includes an open-access digital library of 250+ cuisine and cookbooks from the 1800s to date – a hall of fame – data-driven work on the role of food media in marginalizing West African voices, and a series of short films available for screening.
Magda Tedla
Magda Tedla (b. 1981 in Hamburg, lives and works in Hamburg) is a nutritionist scientist and has been working as an entrepreneur in nutrition prevention since 2016. She studied nutrition sciences and founded Magda's Food Programme and Magda's Natures Treasures to pass on her passion for cooking and sustainable living and culinary approaches from the African continent – in the form of cooking courses, seminars, and the distribution of food supplements – to children, young people, and adults.
Luiza Prado de O. Martins
Luiza Prado de O. Martins (b. 1985 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, lives and works in Berlin) is an artist, writer, and scholar. Her work moves between installation and herbalist practices, using performance and ritual as a way of invitation and activation for audiences. Her practice explores relations and knowledge between plants, political infrastructures, and technology, and questions what structures and processes are needed for collective concerns of environmental care and reproductive justice.
The project is funded by the Elbkulturfonds by the Ministry of Culture and Media Hamburg, Fonds Soziokultur from funds of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, Norddeutsche Stiftung für Umwelt und Entwicklung from proceeds of of the BINGO! Die Umweltlotterie and Postcode Lotterie.