This project was photographed in Jos, Plateau State, in the homes of my loved ones: my parents, my siblings and cousins, my friends and myself. Over the course of two months, I captured candid as well as reenacted moments within the intimate spaces of my loved ones’ lives. I sought to illuminate the unspoken language of family, friendship, and support. These connections are the anchors that help plant our feet in the uncertainty of life and its experiences.
Photography, for me, is a way to still time, to hold onto the details of fleeting moments, to tend to the things that speak to me. Through my lens, I strived to capture the often-overlooked moments that herald these connections. From the joys of sisterhood to the bond between father and son, the support of kin, to the knowing smile of a lover, the playfulness between friends, the moments of contemplation, and lingering gazes, all culminating in a collection of unnoticed subtleties of everyday life.
This project exists importantly as an ode to the people who shape our lives, the ones whose existence sustains us.
My approach to documenting these moments is influenced by the desire to create an honest and authentic depiction of support and community within the context of family and friendship, and what these look like with the people who inhabit the little corners of my world.
This series is an excerpt from Restful: An Anthology of Nigerian Reflections, published by Studio Styles in 2025. It gathers sixteen Nigerian voices — writers, photographers, a retired banknote designer, a podcaster, a documentary artist — around one question: what does it mean to tend to yourself in a country, and a world, that rarely gives permission for respite?
Copies are available at Gather House Africa in Lagos, Good Press in Glasgow, Scotland, and at the following libraries: St Antony’s Library (Oxford), Senate House Library (London), GAS Foundation (Lagos), UNILAG Main Library (Lagos), Afara Women’s Centre (Lagos), The Joydragger’s House (Lagos), New Culture Studios (Ibadan).
To learn more about the Restful project, visit
Website: https://restful.substack.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/restful.ng/