165: Anne-Sophie Ouattara

Nostalgia Interviews with Chris Deacy

My guest this week is Anne-Sophie Ouattara who, until March 2023, was the National Portrait Gallery intern at The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge in Canterbury.
Anne-Sophie is really interested in nostalgia as a teacher of French literature and language and a curator. She has curated her first exhibition called Rooted in Fabric – an exploration of African and black identities through fabric, and is working on a display of three remarkable women of Canterbury. Anne-Sophie talks about finding ways of touching an audience today, connecting the past and the present.
We find out how Anne-Sophie loves getting into other people’s lives but hates writing about herself whereas she loves photography and making images, and the authenticity that comes with that.
Anne-Sophie looks at the gaps in our history as part of her curation work where most of the people have been rich, white and powerful, and so the exhibition has been about acknowledging those who have been forgotten. We learn about the founder of the University of Kent mosque, Sinan Rawi, who as it happens used to be a neighbour of mine! Anne-Sophie talks about how these works can change people’s perceptions of what the past was.
We find out about Anne-Sophie’s background. She was a flutist, and we learn about the family dimension here, as well as about her background in legal history. Her father, who was born in West Africa, was a big barrister, though Anne-Sophie has moved in a different direction.
Anne-Sophie talks about recreating memories in a different context, and how for her ‘home’ is not really a geographical place and how its meaning constantly changes. We also find out why Anne-Sophie is not always in touch with people from her past and about the importance of being in control of the narrative.
We talk about what people want to be remembered for in the context of exhibitions and exploring black identities in the context of fabrics and colonization. We find out about the visitor feedback at The Beaney, and exploring the parts of history about which they don’t know, and to see how different audiences interacted with her exhibitions.
We find out about Anne-Sophie’s future hopes for work in this sector and the importance of diversity in curating, including showing how resilient and creative her ancestors were.
Then, at the end of the interview, we find out what Anne-Sophie’s younger self wanted to be, including being a musician, and what her parents think about the journey she has made. She also discusses her need to take the next big step, and we learn why she is a looking back and forward type of person (and the constant dialogue that exists between the past and the future).