Let me explain. When I was young, I used to watch the fishermen by the banks of the Senegal river. They were working close to the desert in intense h… - Tracey Rose

People from all over the world, who are the most rigorous thinkers, were making work out of stuff in real time. That’s not necessarily paint on canvas; it’s material and matter that speaks. It blew my mind. I cried for a year. I couldn’t. I had a breakdown because I realised the depth of the deception and how far and controlled it was. Seeing people of colour make art in my lifetime blew me the fuck away.

The performance that happens as an artist within that space becomes a political decision to keep the work alive, relevant and moving. If I didn’t I would be ostracised even more.

Musicians are respected, but only in the context that the music itself belongs to the community - not to the person who is playing an instrument or singing a song.