In an ever-changing world, the desire to preserve culture and community is a feeling that resonates with us all. Our identities are moulded by the people, places and spaces that we call home, and when outside influences intrude, the tension between tradition and change is heightened. The gradual displacement of a community and its way of life is disruptive, and at times, irreversible. In these moments, it is important to amplify the lives and voices of those affected.

Photographer and curator Ayesha Kazim captures this sentiment beautifully in her exhibition showcase, This Home of Ours. Through a candid collection of images, the series captures the evolving landscape of her first home, Cape Town’s Bo-Kaap, celebrating the cultural heritage of the neighbourhood and the revered community members who have preserved it for generations.

Popularly advertised as a picturesque tourist attraction, Bo-Kaap is located in Cape Town, South Africa. Its brightly painted houses and cobbled streets are home to a predominantly Muslim and Coloured population. But how did this community come to be? The Cape slave trade, beginning in the 1650s, forcibly displaced thousands of people from Malaysia, Indonesia and South-East Africa, to the Cape Town Colony. Decades later, they endured further hardship under the segregation of the Apartheid regime. Today, gentrification threatens to displace these long-time residents, continuing a pattern of displacement.

Ayesha spent her early childhood in South Africa before moving abroad. During the 2020 Covid pandemic, she returned to Bo-Kaap as a young adult, reconnecting with the people who raised her and documenting their daily lives. This blossomed into This Home of Ours. “It was a therapeutic process that brought me back to the community that seemed to remember me growing up, but I was coming to know it in a new light for the first time,” she reflects.

A far cry from the tourist facade, This Home of Ours is a gesture of appreciation for Bo-Kaap. The series celebrates the unyielding resolve of the people, ensuring their cultural history is archived for generations to come. The official launch of the This Home of Ours photo book took place on November 19th at Shoreditch Arts Club, where works from the series were on display alongside an exclusive screening of interviews from the project. To explore more of Ayesha Kazim’s work, visit her website at https://www.ayeshakazim.com.