Strong, intelligent, serene; the African man has everything necessary to be successful except for the ropes of cultural bondage.
Originally known as “Arica Rising”. Pop Cafe Gallery, Florence (2016)

Strong, intelligent, serene; the African man has everything necessary to be successful except for the ropes of cultural bondage imposed by a western system.

A visual provocation for the African man and the continent, itself, who remain enslaved physically, economically and spiritually by the same western contamination that built the Atlantic Slave Trade. While cultural and economic slavery remain widespread, the greatest problem exists in the minds of Africans themselves, who continue to measure their own success based on western models and values established to oppress them

Alex, the subject, is massive, a warrior; the ropes he could break with ease, but he believes in and maintains his role in the system. Even when he finally breaks the ropes and cries “Freedom”, confusion and doubt follow on the same wings liberty.


“I am a caucasian arab and have always felt people’s bias as soon as they hear my last name, Abouzeid. While complaining to my Senegalese friend, Alex, he laughed and said how lucky I was. “If you don’t introduce yourself, nobody knows. I walk in the door and the first thing they notice is my colour as if I was naked before them.”

Mark Abouzeid

This is not a series about past slavery but about how bias can enslave our own minds and the people to which we direct it.