an undisciplined project

we grapple with the double-bind of the archive—including public (colonial) records, private collections and oral repositories—its sheer terror and possibility, the grave potential for ethical indeterminacy, the inextricable co-mingling of violence and the soft ripples of care.

without taking the archive, or history, by definition or relevance, for granted, we pose another problem: “where might we find the littoral in all of this?”

the following is a gathering of images, clips, audio, fragments, etc., that engage with the littoral zones of the black atlantic, whether on the west african coast or the diaspora.
Bâ, Alioune
Untitled, 1997 © Alioune Bâ
Barnor, James
Boats on Accra Beach, 1950 © James Barnor
Barnor, James

Unloading Flour, James Town Harbour, Accra, 1955 © James Barnor
Barnor, James
A Party Organised for Drum, Chorkor Beach, Accra,  1950 © James Barnor
Barnor, James
Dancing on the beach, Ghana, 1970s © James Barnor

Barnor, James
Harbour Boat Race During Independence Celebrations at Accra Beach, 6 March 1957 © James Barnor
Enwonwu, Ben

Ije Village, 1971 © Yemisi Shyllon Museum
Cissé, Mamadou
A Group of People at the Beach, Mali, 1971  © Mamadou Cissé
Green, Jonathan A.
View across a river of a settlement of thatched shelters. Boat with roofing suspended from pole moored beside settlement. Six adult males in boat, wearing shirts. Adults standing beside shelters on land, looking at photographer. Medium: Albumen print. 1895-1905 ©  The Trustees of the British Museum