In My Grandmother's Footsteps
Document Type
Video
Publication Date
4-28-2022
Abstract
This film looks at my centenarian grandmother’s garden in Mobile, Alabama. Her green thumb is no accident as her matrilineal bloodline is bountiful with a history of land ownership, gardening, and restorative energy. Spanning five generations, this project documents how gardening was and is essential to survival, particularly for African American families in the Deep South. The final cut of the film will include where she grew up as a child in southwestern Alabama, walking in the footsteps of the women who came before her. The blessing of being able to walk the land her family owns almost a century later is a testament to the power of familial ties and to the history of place. The purpose of this work is to create a dialogue about the lesser-known history of African American landowners throughout the South and to bring awareness to this seemingly forgotten lost practice and tradition.
Jai is a southern photographer currently based in Mississippi. Bringing her clients’ vision to life through thoughtful and stimulating media. Jai specializes in culinary, travel, and cultural photography with a future interest in documentary projects. Publications such as Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown and Imbibe Magazine have featured her culinary work, while her travel photography has been used by both international and domestic tourism boards for digital and print campaigns. Jai was recently named as a Nathalie Dupree Fellow for the Southern Foodways Alliance (SFA) and looks forward to researching Black land ownership as well as documenting foodways throughout the South.
Relational Format
video recording
Recommended Citation
Williams, Jai, "In My Grandmother's Footsteps" (2022). Spring 2022 Showcase. 7.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/docshowcase_2022-04/7
Comments
Photo (Click image to see a full-size version):
Jai Williams's headshot is an image of a vintage camera.