We were lucky to catch up with Japheth Asiedu-Kwarteng recently and have shared our conversation below.

Japheth, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

All my works are meaningful and very dear to me and my story. I make work to discuss the overwhelming strength one has to harness to navigate the diaspora as their new space away from their homeland. My most meaningful work would be “I Miss You Dada”, 2021. I made this work after my first visit to my family in Ghana after being away for two years. I used to chat with them behind the screen (video call) every day and so I thought everyone knew me including my then 15 months old son, who was borne in my absence. I could not wait to see them. I was very excited! Unexpectedly, I arrived home only for my son to cry so hard and would not come to me because he could not recognize who I was. He could not differentiate between his dada on the phone and the one standing right in front of him. It took us several weeks before getting to know each other, before I could be his father again.

I pondered on this and many other (not too similar) experiences for some time. I realized the magnitude of the impact of being displaced could be on a person. I understood how my new space in the United States has changed me. I could not feel much belonged in my family, neither did I feel belonged in the United States. I had a dual identity without belonging. “I Miss You Dada” expresses this feeling. My family is very dear to me. They inspire most of the themes and titles of my work.

Japheth, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am an artist, working primarily in ceramics and mixed media. I hold a BA Industrial Art (Ceramics option) from KNUST, Ghana, and an MFA in Ceramics from Illinois State University, USA. I teach Ceramics and Design at University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), Edinburg, Texas. I am a Ghanaian.

I am a member of International Academy of Ceramics, Artaxis and National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA). I have exhibited extensively locally and internationally. I have done several publications, lectures and presentations including presenting “Ghanaian Ceramics Now: Ahoↄden!” at the 2021 NCECA Conference. Also, I have works in the permanent collections of the University Galleries, Normal, Illinois and other private collectors in the United States. I am a Baber Fellow, Multicultural (NCECA) Fellow, Lela Winegarner Fellow; Marshal Dulaney Scholar and Zenobia Scholar.

I make work that continues to acknowledge the legacy of Ghanaian ceramics history and contemporary presence without restriction, and often utilizes complex cultural symbols, such as those associated with Kente, the meanings of which are specific, layered, and nuanced. In employing these symbols in a ceramic context and infiltrating boundaries between traditional media, I make an imminently contemporary statement and exemplify an approach to my work which transcends form and questions the relationship between tradition and modernity, cultural exchange, and tension.

As a kid I used to drink from “ahina” (water cooler) and eat from “apotoyowa” (grinding bowl). I never knew what they were made of and had no idea about what ceramics or pottery was. Coincidentally, I got introduced to clay and ceramics academically in senior high school. I have not looked back since.

I am very proud of how my work resonates with people of diverse backgrounds and experiences, but may not really have the voice or space to share their story. I remember a woman walked up to me, after my lecture at the Blue Line Arts in Roseville, California, and expressed how touched she was about my work and story, and how they reflect her experiences. She was very thankful and excited.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My work gives me a voice to reach thousands, if not millions, of people. My goal is to use this voice to be the voice of the “voiceless”; to share my story and importance of family; to highlight on the plight of being an immigrant/non-immigrant; create a space of belonging and strength. Have you ever thought of the strength we need to accommodate the impact of being classified as “resident alien”?

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Having my work speak to issues that are less thought of or imagined, is most rewarding for me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://japhethglobal.com/
• Instagram: japheth_global
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/japheth.asiedukwarteng.1?mibextid=ZbWKwL
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/japheth-asiedu-kwarteng/