Rich Allela

Lives and works in Nairobi, Kenya

Artist statement

My work moves between documentary and imaginative transformation: to record lived realities while also expanding them. I am drawn to people and communities whose stories are often overlooked, seeking to restore presence, agency, and dignity through collaborative portraiture. In my recent series Becoming, I invited single mothers from Kibera to inhabit their dream careers for a day. Styled and photographed as lawyers, chefs, nurses, or air hostesses, they embody futures that circumstance has deferred but not erased. These portraits are not fantasy in the shallow sense; they are acts of re-visioning, asking both subjects and viewers to reflect on identity, aspiration, and possibility. My process is rooted in collaboration and care. I approach each subject as a co-creator, not a passive model, ensuring the resulting images feel authentic and empowering. I aim for my work to witness, uplift, and disrupt: to bear testimony, to affirm resilience, and to challenge assumptions about class, gender, and place. Though grounded in the realities of Nairobi, my practice speaks to universal questions: Who gets to dream? What barriers shape identity? How might art reimagine futures? I see the camera not just as a recording device, but as a portal into alternate worlds. Through the Foundwork Artist Prize, I hope to expand projects like Becoming, building platforms where art can connect directly to dialogue, advocacy, and community. My goal is simple yet ambitious: to make visible what is,...

Artwork