“For 4 years I worked very closely with two other people (Gordon and Nancy) in a small photography department. At the end of this time, over a period of a few months, Gordon became very ill and unfortunately didn’t have any family around as he was from New Zealand. Nancy and I cared for Gordon until he sadly died from the illness. After the funeral, we found he had left us these jade shapes. We discovered that in Maori tradition, loved ones would gift each other jade that would be worn against the skin for the rest of the recipient’s life. It it superglued to a shoelace on my wrist that I never take off. It reminds me of Gordon and my Nancy. But it mostly reminds me not to waste another single day of my life.”

Thank you to Jessica Sanders for sharing.

As part of the exhibition, ‘Tell be the story of all these things‘. The exhibition title is inspired by Rehana Zaman’s 2016 film Tell me the story of all these things (included in the exhibition), which revolves around a conversation between the artist and her two sisters as they prepare a meal. Find out more about the exhibition.