Meet the artist behind one of 2020’s most powerful billboard pieces

When Josephine Gyasi penned a raw and emotional response to the killing of George Floyd, her intention was never for it to be shared.

Thanks to the Rising Arts Agency’s #WhoseFuture campaign, her words were transformed from creased paper sheets into a statement visible on billboards across the city, acting as a powerful wake up call for many and resonating deeply with others.

But the Easton-based artist also had to face a racist backlash to What are your plans? which confronts systemic racism and challenges white people – and in particular the white man – on what is going to change.

Reflecting on a turbulent year, Josephine admits putting this powerful statement piece – her first published work – out for everyone in the city to see has taken its toll on her but she refuses to be silenced and remains committed to activism through art and, more importantly, action – with big plans for the future.

“When I wrote it, it was not supposed to be a poem, it was an outpouring of frustration and anger and heartbreak,” Josephine tells Bristol24/7.

“It was not even meant to be shared, it was personal, I wrote it for myself. It was a real statement piece.”

The artist found comfort in writing following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis in May and the subsequent global Black Lives Matter protests. She says that the incredible support she has from friends has helped her be able to continue her work.

Josephine Gyasi says she is lucky to have incredible support from friends and family – photo by Tasha Hylton

Josephine has gone on to film a two minute spoken word performance of What are your plans? Co-created by a team of Bristol creatives, in which she delivers her questions in front of the billboards. She says the racist vitriol she endured from some people online only served to prove how necessary it is to confront things and keep these conversations out in the open.

She will be going on to exhibit at the RWA Annual Open exhibition in 2021 and is also set to feature on the BBC upload platform.

Josephine, who is a creative producer at Knowle West Media Centre and creative director for Club Djembe and Sun Kissed Youth, also hosts a monthly show on SWU.fm and is about to start a new role tutoring at UWE Bristol. She says it’s important to her to continue making her voice heard but also to take it at her own pace.

“Even if we take away the fact that we are talking about police brutality and systemic racism, it’s a lot to put out creative work,” admits Josephine. “It has been a test for sure but the support I have is incredible.”

She continues: “As much as it’s my art, it’s not my problem. In an ideal world, I would have not have anything to do with it [responding to racism] because of what’s expected and what this type of work does to you. But at the same time, I’m aware that the message is stronger because it’s coming from me and it’s public.”

The artist and activist refuses to be silenced by the racist backlash her work received – photo taken from the What Are Your Plans? film by Pierre Niyongira

Josephine moved to Bristol six years ago and says she is in a privileged position in having the support and resources to create art in activism.

“I had so many big plans for it, which I still do, but we have to make sure we manage our own self-care and wellbeing first. I also want to make sure it’s less about me and more about the problem – activism is not a popularity contest, but seems to be becoming that,” she tells Bristol24/7.

Asked whether much has changed in the six months since some 10,000 people turned out in Bristol to take a stand against racial inequality and the toppling of Edward Colston’s statue, Josephine hesitates. She is pleased that any celebration of the slave trader is slowly and surely being erased from the city, adding that she is all too aware of how long this has been encouraged by certain individuals and leaders. It feels bittersweet, she says, but this is the change we want to see.

Josephine says sometimes it’s easier to start close to home rather than trying to change the world – photo by Tasha Hylton

Josephine expressed her admiration for the younger generation and their determination and organising skills – shown in the “persistent, professional and powerful” All Black Lives Matter Bristol movement – a group which formed by young black people living in the city and supported by allies.

She is not a pessimist, she says, but a realist. Alluding to the fact there have been many anti-racism protests before and yet nothing has fundamentally changed, Josephine says this time does feel different but whether this will be enough to bring about the change needed is yet to be seen.

After a moment’s thought, she adds: “Sometimes when you’re trying to make change, start with close friends and family rather than trying to change the whole world.”

Joesphine will be giving an interview about What Are Your Plans? on Ujima Radio on Tuesday, December 22 at 11am. Prints of the What Are Your Plans? piece are available to buy from the RWA.

Main photo taken from the What Are Your Plans? film by Pierre Niyongira 

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