The Division of Equity Diversity and Inclusion is excited to be collaborating with Melbourne based curator Sabina McKenna, to produce an iteration of her original ongoing project Where are you from? at UNSW.
To describe the photojournalistic project, Sabina has said:
For many people of colour living in communities with a white predominance, the question "Where are you from?" is a regular encounter. While this question might be considered harmless, it can be othering and tiresome to constantly explain your existence.
Where are you from? was created to celebrate, educate and raise awareness about the BIPOC identity, through thought provoking art and storytelling.
Therapy for some, and education for others; the project stimulates the vital conversations about belonging and acceptance that need to be heard and shared.
Where are you from? (WAYF) was first launched at Blak Dot Gallery, Melbourne and online in 2018. The second series, Where are you from? Sydney, was shown in 2019 at Goodspace Gallery, Chippendale, as well as The Other Art Fair, Kensington.
In 2020 WAYF launched an online exhibition and publication (about textured hair), Hair by Where are you from? Which was reimagined in 2021 as a physical hair salon in collaboration with Atong Atem and MPAV Pavilion.
Since its inception, WAYF has been featured by ABC TV, The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, Broadsheet, ABC Life, Acclaim Magazine, Ladies of Leisure, Fashion Journal Magazine, Vice, Frankie Magazine, iD UK, Acclaim Magazine, ArtsHub, Zee Feed, ABC Radio National, Triple R and FBI Radio Sydney, and East Side Radio.