In #101 Through the Lens, artist and photographer Zoë Donkor Roussos brings a stack of #101s with her to Ghana, where she has roots. Through photographs from everyday life, she explores the connection between places, identity and the stories we carry with us – and that our clothes get to carry too.
“I’ve been wearing Mads Nørgaard’s #101 T-shirts since I was very little. They’ve been with me when I’ve visited family, been on holiday, at school or at special occasions. It goes without saying that clothes take on a life of their own once they’re bought, but what kind of life, and what experiences each one ends up carrying, is so different depending on who buys them. That’s really what I’ve been trying to explore through this project,” says Zoë about #101 as the starting point for the project.
At the same time, she sees a connection between #101 and Ghana, particularly in the colours:
“#101 has always been a reliable gift wish for me, and I remember dreaming as a child of owning all the different colours and stripes it came in. As I see it, there actually isn’t that much distance between #101’s colourful universe and the buildings and people of Ghana. It’s a cross-cultural encounter that I think many people who have more than one place they call home will recognise.”
As part of the project, Zoë is publishing a photobook, which will be exhibited at Nørgaard paa Strøget.
Explore the stories behind five of the photographs from #101 Through the Lens here:
The Local Hair Salon
I have a cousin who lives in Alhajo in Accra, not far from my grandmother. In Alhajo, there’s an “everyone knows everyone” kind of atmosphere. I took this photograph while getting my hair braided at the local salon near where he lives. I arrived early in the morning, but as I might have expected, it stretched into the evening. It’s often a lovely atmosphere: stories are shared, and people stop by simply to hang out.
Three Generations
This is a photograph I’m personally very fond of. It was taken at my grandmother’s house, where she stands in the middle, with my cousin Joe on the left and my uncle Kwabena on the right. There is a good atmosphere in the photo – they are smiling and laughing – and for me it captures that atmosphere and approach to life very well.
Horseback riding by the beach
If you go to the beach in Ghana – particularly in Accra, where people generally don’t swim because of the strong currents – you will almost always come across young men walking or riding horses along the shoreline, hoping someone will pay for a photograph or a ride.
I wanted to capture this because it’s one of those things you simply can’t avoid if you’ve been to Ghana. Unlike fantasy coffins, it’s not something you need to seek out – it will find you.
I’ve also always associated horse riding with women back home, but in Ghana it’s only men I’ve seen riding horses, both on the beach and elsewhere. I think that’s an interesting cultural difference.
Eric and fantasy coffins
This photograph was taken at the workshop of a woodworker named Eric, located near Labadi Beach. He specialises in making fantasy coffins, a truly beautiful tradition among the Ga people of Ghana. The idea is to honour the dead by crafting a coffin that symbolises an interest, a personality trait or a profession.
In the photograph, Eric stands beside a coffin shaped like a fish, which might suggest it was made for a fisherman who had passed away. Had it been shaped like a beer bottle, it could have symbolised someone who enjoyed drinking or simply enjoying life. It is up to the family to decide what a person should be buried in and what it should represent.
This was one of those things I had always heard about, but that this project pushed me to explore more deeply. Eric is just one of many incredibly talented artists I met, and the craft is often passed down through generations.
A Sunday Bike Show
This photograph was taken on a Sunday, which is a church day, so most places stay closed until late afternoon and not much generally happens. People take time to relax before the week begins, but as a restless Copenhagener, this has become one of my favourite Sunday activities. It’s a bike show that used to take place in Jamestown, but due to complaints from residents and safety concerns, it has been moved to a motorway called Dzorwulu.
It’s a little bit terrifying, but also one of the coolest things to experience. It’s extremely male-dominated, so I’m usually one of the only women standing there watching.
"I am very proud of this collaboration with Zoë. It has resulted in a beautiful and honest project about belonging to more than one place at once – about roots, curiosity and diversity. #101 lives a life with those who wear it, and Zoë captures that beautifully in #101 Through the Lens." – Mads Nørgaard
