Thank you for your interest in my work. Here is the story:
The installation is an apparition of my family countryside house in Bickersteth, Jamaica dripping in foliage. with a fractured light screen inside of it. The lighting install is in collaborations with WILDBLUR with a constellation of family photos hover in the shelter with notes, diary entries and prayers while muffled audio plays.
In November 2025 Hurricane Melissa destroyed the home in Jamaica, left a lot of the neighbors in that countryside village homeless and with the task of rebuilding from nothing.
These same neighbors in Bickersteth, Jamaica embraced me when I visited for the 1st time as an adult in 2022. I remember the surprising feeling of acceptance and love from these same people as I worried about rejection and homophobia. I was still on my ancestral journey to open my heart, free of fear. And so since my family name in Jamaica is “Coote”, on every road in Bickersteth I’d hear “ohh you must be Ms Coote great grand picky (great grandchild). Don’t worry nobody a trouble you…”. To feel accepted, love and protected was a feeling and memory I hold close to my heart. A gift from these village people who are now surviving the aftermath of the hurricane.
The vibrant colors and sun kissed light I experienced while there has romantically stained my practice as well. I’ll never forget driving up the hill to the house, getting out of the van and seeing this beautiful, lush, fern gully that was the ancestral beginnings of my family. I took landscape and still life photographs for the first time and got to see the land before it was washed away. The luscious greens, vibrant pinks/oranges and deep neon blue skies.
In thinking about the mountain of labor they have to rebuild I stay hopeful. A feeling a lot of us are working to feel these days during these uncertain times.
One thing that has given me solace is to pour into my communities with resource and care. I’m still in the works to connect with the people of Bickersteth but in the meantime I have mobilized to send direct, zero-barrier cash aid to trans and queer people in Jamaica. This has been organized by queer Jamaicans, for queer Jamaicans, in collaboration with my organization Connek Ja, my organization Ragga Nyc, Sapphic Ja, Black Trans Travel Fund , Papi Juice , We Out and Bad and Thank God for Abortion.
Trans and queer Jamaicans are among the most vulnerable people devastated by Hurricane Melissa. Many have lost their homes, safety, and access to basic necessities.
If you feel so inclined please donate today and your donation goes directly into the hands of people rebuilding their lives in the face of disaster. Every dollar helps someone find safety, stability, and hope.
Solidarity is action.
Much love,
Christopher Udemezue aka Christina
Find out more here. Thank you again for your support. - xx Christina