BELONGING

Niyasia Owens-Watts

Summary
Final work

Niyasia Owens-Watts is a South East London-based visual artist. Her work focuses on the subject of identity and culture which is informed by her Barbadian and Jamaican background and London upbringing. Owens-Watts' aim is to celebrate the beauty and normality of her ‘everyday’ within the communities she belongs to and is adamant on showcasing the uniqueness of under-represented faces and cultures within her work.

Niyasia Owens-Watts is a South East London-based visual artist. Her work focuses on the subject o...

CollegeLondon College of Fashion
CourseBA (Hons) Fashion Styling and Production
Graduation year2023

‘BELONGING' is a ‘love letter’ to my support system, Barbados and South East London which are the three things that bring a sense of wholeness to my life.

The project was underpinned by Professor Russell Belk's theories presented in his 1988 essay 'Possessions and The Extended Self' which explores the relationship between individuals and possessions and how this affects our identity outside of the body. Belk explains that possessions are not just physical items but can include people and places. Belk's quotes can be seen throughout my photo book and used to contextualise my photographs.

The project consists of three elements: a series of photographs documenting my family and my grandparent's house in Barbados which I consider to be a 'home away from home' and where parts of my childhood memories were formed, a short film which is an ode to South East London where I originally grew up and I am still currently based and lastly, a short video of 3D photogrammetry of my grandparent's house as I wanted to immortalise our family home for future generations.