ubuntu Magazine operates on the sovereign land and waters of the Wurundjeri and the Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin Nation. We acknowledge that this land was never ceded and that both colonisation and active resistance against empire is ongoing. We pay our respects to Ancestors and Elders. Always was, always will be Aboriginal land.
"Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu."
(translation: a person is a person through other people)
Founded in 2023, Ubuntu is an online, interactive magazine that embraces multimedia; where an audio-series can sit right in-between a playscript and an interactive illustration. With a focus on art, culture and history, Ubuntu platforms the work of young, emerging and mid-career creatives throughout Melbourne, Australia. Engaging and collaborating with varied practices and disciplines, the magazine curates artist features and interviews, alongside newly commissioned audio, visual and written works.
Ubuntu is a word with many variations throughout the Bantu language groups of Africa. It is a philosophy of centering community care, and understanding you’re a part of a past, present and future collective. You carry both your ancestors and descendants with you, and the amount of humanity you have as a person, is dependent on how much humanity you give to others.
A commissionThe Coloniser’s Game, a photographic-essay by Navaal Saeed
Navaal is an emerging film photographer, focused on sharing diasporic experiences, stories, and perspectives as a way of reconciling his own. He is entranced and empowered by various mediums, from contemporary editorials and conceptual shoots, to music and cinematography.
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The Coloniser’s Game
“Built on white picket fences, English willow and wool sweaters—test cricket was a way to assert and perpetuate racial superiority through supposed formalities. Growing up, there’s always something sweet about watching the colonised outmatch the coloniser, to beat the “intelligent white man” at their own game. For the global diaspora, excellence in cricket provides a sense of nationalist and individual pride. Above all else, you feel seen—being able to point at the Khawajas, the Moeens and the Alana Kings and see people who look like you can be celebrated. Whilst cricket reflects a colonial history, it also represents a postcolonial consciousness. Its globalisation allows it to serve as a vessel for Pakistanis, Indians, Bengalis, Sri Lankans, West Indians, Afghanis and more to stand firmer in the beauty of their heritage, identity and culture.”
Model: Shaun Jinson (@shaunjinson)
Photographer: Daniel Temesgen (@stillsbydaniel)
Assisting: Fathiah Raihan (@fathiahraihan) & Uma Sharma (@uwannabeyonce)
