The Alchemy of Creation: Spotlight on AnAkA, Holistic World-Builder
In a world where the lines between disciplines blur and creativity becomes ritual, the multidisciplinary artist known as AnAkA emerges as a force of transformation. With a practice that spans photography, film, creative direction, archive work, ritual healing and world-building, AnAkA not only creates art — she conjures worlds.
Origins & Artistic Statement ~
On her website, AnAkA describes herself as a “World Builder and Story Doula,” standing “at the centre‐pulse of creation, where Higher Consciousness evokes organic artistry.”
Her practice is rooted in the belief that “Spirit and ritual are inseparable from the creative process.”
Since 2012 she has cultivated an archive called AKTIV8, an evolving ethnographic collection of photographs, films, and sounds created to document and strengthen the heartbeat of Pan-Indigenous movements, practices, and rituals of our time.
Her work spans: photography, film direction, tattooing, visual art, event curation, dance, herbal healing — all forming a holistic, integrated practice.
These elements combine into a singular vision: creativity as healing, as spiritual enquiry, and as communal exchange.
The Journey & Milestones ~
AnAkA holds a BA in Ethnographic Research with double minors in Photography and Film Production from the University of Southern California (USC class of 2016) and spent a semester at the University of Cape Town.
Her project list reads like a map of global, cultural and creative engagement:
Photography of roller skaters in Mombasa, Kenya (with support of Art Noise Nigeria) in 2018.
A short film “Salvadores de la Medicina [Saviors of the Medicine]” in October 2019—Director, DP, Producer.
Many notable brand / music collaborations: for example, directed the video for Janelle Monáe’s “Only Have Eyes 42” in January 2024.
The “AKTIV8 Archive Portal” commissioned by The Shed, NYC in July 2021.
From exhibitions in Cape Town and Lagos, to residencies in Nairobi, to brand work with global heavy-hitters such as Nike, American Express, Levi’s, and Netflix — her practice is expansive and acclaimed.
Key Themes & Aesthetic ~-
1. Ritual, Indigenous Wisdom & Archives
One of the most compelling threads in AnAkA’s work is her attempt to reconnect the Self (and collective selves) to ancestral wisdoms and lineages severed through colonialism and displacement. She uses her twin tools of ethnography and artistry to make visible what’s often invisible: cultural practices, movement, ritual, sound. In her words:
"When culture is lost, we’re forced to create our own."
Her archive-work doesn’t simply document: it creates portals. Immersive spaces woven with sound, movement, visuals, aimed at communal exchange rather than passive consumption.
2. Representation & Collaboration
In her interview with EyeEm magazine, AnAkA reflects on the importance of representation, of making space for the subject’s energy to flourish, and of her own shifting role depending on who she is collaborating with.
Her background in ethnographic research gives her sensitivity to power dynamics, race, culture, and the anthropological impulse behind “looking.” She states this awareness comes from her learning how anthropology and research have been used to justify racial discrimination.
3. Multidisciplinarity & Holistic Practice
Photography is not enough, film alone won’t suffice. For AnAkA, creative direction, event curation, dance, tattooing, herbal healing — all these practices feed each other. The notion of “world-building” means she engages with the scope of experience: visual, sonic, communal, spiritual.
Why This Work Matters ~
Cultural reclamation & visibility: In an era when mainstream visuals often erase or commodify marginalized realities, AnAkA’s work centers underground people, movements, rituals — giving them space to shine.
Bridging brand and social conscience: She collaborates with top brands (Nike, Levi’s, etc) but maintains practices rooted in care, ritual, healing and community. This bridging of commercial and sacred is rare.
Archival futurism: The AKTIV8 archive doesn’t simply live in the past; it projects into the future. It is about “preserving sacred wisdom while envisioning new worlds.”
Empowerment through process: Her emphasis on process (ritual, collaboration, intention) offers a model for how creative work can be regenerative rather than extractive.
A Look Forward ~
What’s next for AnAkA? In the EyeEm interview she pointed towards expanding physical spaces — places where people can experience the knowledge, not just view it.
Given her recent projects (eg. immersive VR world curation in 2024) and the ongoing evolution of the AKTIV8 archive, expect more hybrid, multisensory, community-based experiences. She’s building worlds you don’t just see — you inhabit.
Takeaways for Creatives & Changemakers ~
Let process be ritual. What rituals — personal, communal, ancestral — inform your creative practice?
Archive with intention. Documenting culture is not just about preserving; it’s about enabling dynamic exchange and future possibility.
Collaborate with respect. AnAkA emphasizes letting the subject lead, shaping your role to uplift rather than overshadow.
Embrace multidisciplinarity. The boundary between disciplines is porous. Visual art, sonic art, movement, ritual all talk to each other. Build for community. Creative work that isolates is limited; creative work that generates space for others transforms.
In highlighting AnAkA’s journey, we glimpse something more than an individual artist’s catalogue. We see a model for how creativity can be expansive — reaching across continents, media, bodies, and ideologies. At its heart stands the possibility of building new worlds — worlds anchored in ancient wisdom yet fully alive to the future.
To see more about AnAkA, please visit:
https://anaka.work/anakacv
Posted By: Robert Walker
Sunday, October 19th 2025 at 12:15PM
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