When you step into Nana Yaw Oduro’s world, you find a vibrant, colourful, and poetic place that speaks on boyhood, self-acceptance, and his environment. Hailing from Ghana, the photographer is a natural-born storyteller who crafts images through which he expresses his innermost emotions. “It would be death for me as an artist to play by the rules of mass consumption and fast production today because my work is emotional, personal, and I have to feel deeply and get a cause to move me,” he says in this interview. Today, we speak with him about planning vs improvisation, self-portraiture, and finding one’s way.
Hey Nana, it’s a pleasure to have you here. First of all, how are you feeling today, and where are you answering us from?
Hi Arnau, thank you for the invite. I’m doing awesome. I’m speaking to you from Ghana.
You’re now a photographer, but you first studied business at the University of Ghana. Why did you enroll in that degree, and what made you decide to pursue a more creative path?
I studied business even in high school as I had a passion for it. To be honest, studying at university was purely out of interest at that time, to further what I had studied in high school and also to have opportunities that came with having that degree, as I was younger and didn’t really have a clear path in the arts.
With art, I was always pursuing it. Though it wasn’t so clear and obvious even to me when I was younger — it was more of a fun thing. I just knew I possessed something, and I wanted to express it. Even in school, I was practising and creating with the little I had. After school, as I got older, it became clearer to me where my actual interest lay. The passion had grown, and I was sure I just wanted to make art — that’s all I cared to do with my time.
Composition is a very important pillar of your work — the colours, the styling, the backgrounds, the models’ poses, etc. Do you plan a lot before shooting, or does improvisation also have space in your process?
Thank you, Arnau. Both approaches actually apply to me, but there’s a lot of space for improvisation. Typically in my practice, there are two stages where I keep an absolutely open mind. I think they are the most decisive moments: the brainstorm and the final execution on set. At these stages, I'm very much open-minded because I like to have a wide range of versions to choose from, and I welcome all possibilities so that I don't end up being too directive and interfering with my creative flow.
Planning, I believe, is inevitable in order to achieve desired results. So yes, I do plan prior to shooting, also after the brainstorm, when I have to make decisions on the subject, colours, styling, props, and possibly the set (if I need something extra, for example). Even during and after these periods, I still keep an open mind somehow.
Another element characteristic of your oeuvre is the use of vivid colours. Do you have a favourite one to shoot, or one that you think looks better than others on camera?
Not exactly. I don’t have a favourite colour to use. Most times, that is decided during the brainstorming because I have a fair idea of what the final image should look like, and this sometimes is subject to change — but rarely does.
Most of your characters are Ghanaian men. We see them in everyday activities like jumping rope and going to the beach, but also in highly staged and aesthetic compositions. Is this a way to explore what it means to be a man in Ghana (or the world) today? Like a reflection on masculinity?
At the core of my work, I am expressing myself — my journey through boyhood, masculinity, and self-acceptance. This, as a whole, captures my experience of existing as a man in this part of the world. My environment plays a big role in shaping me, so I am more drawn to having elements of that in my work, referencing the people who have shared experiences with me, and that is typically men. I photograph women too.
“My work may bring joy to some and may leave others with questions, stirring up emotions they may have ignored. I create for all of those emotions.”
As a curiosity, do you see yourself standing in front of your own camera to do some self-portraits in the near future?
YES. This is something I have always thought about and have decided to do. Possibly create a series of images as well. This is because, with certain ideas, there is so much I need to express. I believe I’m the best person to do so as the subject because I’m the one who possesses the feelings and wants to act and visualise them in the best ways possible.
I am pretty obsessed with one of your latest pictures, titled How It Is at Home. The flower masks, the highly contrasted colours, the all-white, stripped-down looks, the surprise factor with the kid looking upwards… I don’t know, I just love it a lot. Could you tell me more about it?
Thank you, Arnau. I made this work as personal as possible, which I believe many others relate to in the same way I do, especially creatives. It’s generally about people who may be quite unconventional in the environments they find themselves in. Coming from a family where I’m the only artist, sometimes I share feelings and ideas that may not be understood by all, but it also gives me a sense of awakening of who I am. In this image, I represented this kid looking up as ‘the’ different being.
The subjects are relatives and close people from my childhood. I try as much as possible to use people who’re close to me for personal projects because they best understand my experiences, and some of them have lived them too.
I feel a sense of joy when looking at your photos; most of them seem blissful and happy. Is that something you strive for?
I’m glad you have that feeling of joy, but not everyone feels the same. So, not exactly. I wouldn’t say that it is the particular reaction I seek, but rather for everyone to have a deep realisation of self when they come into contact with a work of mine, and this could come in different forms. Personally, I might think otherwise about my practice. I prefer my oeuvre to evoke feelings and challenge people to understand it in their own unique ways.
As an artist, I’ve grown to appreciate the different perspectives and interpretations people have when they look at my work. It may bring joy to some and may leave others with questions, stirring up emotions they may have ignored. I create for all of those emotions. I believe everybody has a distinct view and feeling about what a particular work of art does to and for them.
You’re a natural-born storyteller. You’ve confessed before to using writing as your means of expression but then decided to switch to image-making. Do you still write in your free time? Maybe you have some kind of diary, for example?
Yes, I’ve kept a diary since many years ago and also a Google Doc that serves as an archive for me, because I don’t write as much as I did before. My focus has shifted more to making visuals recently, but I do still write some short poems from time to time.
Back in 2023, you published your first photo book, Losing It at Home. What was the process like? How did you decide on the photos, and how did the editor(s) help you put it together?
Putting together my first book, Losing It at Home, was actually an enjoyable experience. Working on it was also quite a challenge when it came to image selection, mainly because I wanted to include possibly all my works, which didn’t seem feasible due to the page limit. But with the help of the publisher, I was able to make the right selection to best describe the idea I had for the book, which in the end worked out fine.
Social media is an important tool for artists to promote their work, make contacts, etc. But at the same time, it’s put a lot of pressure on creative people to constantly produce to feed the machine. How do you navigate that?
True, there’s pressure to create more and more, but I don't think I have ever played by that. I’m a very sensitive person, so I tend to pay attention to myself a lot, which means I only ever get to do things and work when I actually feel like it and want to, and in some cases, have to, when there are commissions and all that.
It would be death for me as an artist to play by the rules of mass consumption and fast production today because my work is emotional, personal, and I have to feel deeply and get a cause to move me. I really can't choose when that decides to come. I can't create at other people’s pace. Not even if I tried.
To finish, any upcoming projects or exhibits we should be aware of?
Currently, I'm working on standalone images, which I wouldn’t call a series. There are so many of those to finish, so that's where my dedication is.
