Olivia Lifungula the photographer who captures the construction of black femininity.

Olivia Lifungula, the Congo-born, Belgium-raised photographer and filmmaker now living in London, talks with us about her work.

Which explores the themes of intimacy, beauty, and the importance of showcasing black love in a way that is rarely represented in the media while highlighting our vulnerability, intimacy, and joy.

“I want to share a different perspective of our experiences as human beings.”

Please could you introduce yourself?

My name is Olivia Lifungula, and I'm thirty-one years old, living in southeast London. Following the civil war in Congo, my entire family and I moved to Belgium. I was about eight years old, and it was my first time in Europe, and I haven't been back since.

I now work as a photographer and filmmaker in London, and my work explores the themes of intimacy, beauty, and the construction of black femininity in the arts and media.

What got you into film and image-making?

I was that kid that was fascinated by MTV and watched a lot of music videos, and I was constantly being told off for watching too much TV. 

I also religiously collected magazines and constantly looked at them, and I like to believe that that's where my love for image-making came about.

But I will say it took a little while to start taking photos. I never even thought of photography as a career because I just didn't grow up seeing anyone who looked like me or where I'm from doing it. Moving to the UK were at 21, living in east London when everybody was a photographer, clothing designer, or an artist of some sort gave me the confidence I needed to just go for it. We were all kind of struggling, but the friends I made here definitely put the batteries in my back and made it possible.

What is the power of photography for you?

The lack of representation while growing up has impacted the art that I make today. Working in an industry that often only uses us as props, I feel called to help shift that narrative by taking up space and telling our stories in beautiful and authentic ways, either through film or photography. That's been the most empowering for me as a young black woman and all the people who connect to the work I do. 

On an emotional level, what can a photograph make you feel?

Most days, I genuinely just want my work to be someone's opportunity to escape and feel joy. That's what art was to me as a child, so ideally, that's what I would want people to feel while looking at my work.

What is the most significant difference between fashion photography and film for you?

I tend to approach both in the same way and love the idea of storytelling in both stills and moving images. Still, film is generally a much longer process, especially when editing, so you have to like to sit behind a computer for hours and replay the exact scene twenty-five times, which I don't mind and find rather fulfilling.

Do you have a go-to sentence to define your work?

I don't know if I have a go-to sentence to define my work. Still, as an image-maker, I've always felt called to forge my own path and create more of what I wanted to see in the world, so I'm always super intentional about creating work where you see black people hugging and kissing because I don't see enough of that.

I want to share a different perspective of our experiences as human beings and showcase black love in a way that is rarely represented in the media, highlighting our vulnerability, our intimacy, and our joy.

Tell us about the exhibition "The Self Portrait" by Ronan Mckenzie x Wepresent that you were a part of.

The exhibition Titled the Self -Portrait was a celebration of Black female photographers, demonstrating the nuance of not only the stories we tell but the people behind the lens telling them.

As a photographer, being a part of this beautiful and historical moment and having my work in such a beautiful/inclusive space, next to other insanely talented black women, has been the honor of my career so far.

As a woman who has often struggled with seeing myself, it was a great moment of self-discovery and confidence.

I felt beautiful and empowered throughout the process and now get to keep that feeling with me forever.

What inspires you in the day-to-day?

I'm always looking at films that I love. I look at other people's work too, and I always get inspired by my friends' work in their different practices. I like having these round table conversations and talking about everyone's ideas. So much of what I do is based on collaboration I don't think I could create in any other way.

I'm also really drawn to photographing people in love.

For as long as I can remember, I've always been drawn to romance and its ability to allow me to escape and explore human emotions. There's always been a constant longing and idealization of love in my work and personal life, so I always make sure I can find that in my work.

What other heroes do you have in photography?

Discovering Photographer Corinne Day's work and life story was a game-changer too. She's created the most intimate work that felt very soft, for lack of better words. I have grown as my own person since and found many other inspirations, but I will always want my work to feel feminine, soft, intimate, and authentic as her work felt to me.

In your latest shoot, you honored your mother. Can you tell us more about it?

My mother's childhood inspires the story I shot for the violet book in Lubumbashi, then Kinshasa in the '70s.

Her memories of an almost utopian post-independence world, when she and her four sisters were sheltered from growing due to political uncertainty and economic chaos.

That time is still ingrained in her memory as the best time of her life. I grew up listening to stories of her and my aunties playing with each other in the sun, listening to some amazing Congolese rumba but also Elvis Presley.

I have always loved listening to these stories, and I never want them to get lost, so I tell them too, in my own way.

Lastly, what advice would you give to an aspiring photographer?

It's never about the camera / EQ you use but your ideas! Work with what you have available to you.

Also that it's ok to say no, and speak up without fear of coming across as difficult. I'm very reserved, so it's sometimes a bit challenging to speak up in rooms full of people, especially as a woman. It's something that I'm quickly learning to do.

Photography Olivia Lifungula

Creative direction Laila Zakaria

Model Maddie Seisay

Styling Palesa Dlamini

Make-up Michelle Leandra

Nails Stacey Bushay

Hair Shada Jenkins

Set design Sheena Brobbey