“Doing Supi,” Doing Supi or Or
e B o t e s l E g Somethin
something else to An image comes to mind: an empty field of green grass. On the horizon, to the east, are mountains covered by a light mist. The center of the frame holds two women walking towards the camera, unaware of its presence. In this photo, what cultural critic Roland Barthes calls the punctum – the thing that grabs my attention and holds me – is in the way they are walking.
These two middle-aged women hold hands, much as five-year olds might do, as if they are not quite sure how their hands fit into each other. These women – one my mother, the other her cousin – share a moment of intimacy. An intimacy that is apparently nonthreatening. And in this non-threatening moment, the witch takes flight. Periodically, I ponder this photo. To borrow Toni Morrison’s words, the photo provokes a “something else to be-ness” that neither the photographer nor the subjects may have imagined: the possibility for sexualized intimacy between women. Beyond the frame, this possibility haunts the image.
By
Anima Adjepong Anima is a work in progress whose life has been characterized by many perambulations and good luck. One day, they would like to live on a beach close to mountains.
Emergence
I
An artistic journal of women and gender non conforming people
35