The Anancy-ism of the Jamaican Leaf People: Using Storytelling as a form of Escapism

Anancy-ism refers to the tradition of folk tales known as Anancy stories that originated from the Akan people of Ghana that have been adapted and spread throughout the Caribbean, particularly in Jamaica. The central character in these folklores is Anancy (or Anansi), a spider who often embodies traits of cunning, wit, and trickery.

2018

Jamaica

The Anancy-ism of the Jamaican Leaf People is a concept created by Sabine Coulson during her adolescence while living in Jamaica. A simple concept of made up people living in a leaf. She further developed this concept during her thesis showcase by collaborating with author Sarah Tulloch to fully realize this idea into a story that conveyed themes of justice, retribution, unity and outsmarting the strong.

That story and history has inspired the print designs and visuals seen in this collection.

Proteinecous Prints 1-4

Prints inspired by the webs of a spider representing the Jamaican folklore figure Anansy.—

“Proteinaceous Prints consists of four black-and-white prints, each representing a stage of a narrative: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. The black-and-white palette emphasizes the stark contrast between the stages, capturing the tension and release of a story’s flow. The organic strokes, reminiscent of spider webs, guide the viewer through the narrative, while the progression of the images mimics how Anancy weaves a story from beginning to end.”

  • Proteinecous Book I

  • Proteinecous Book II

  • Proteinecous Book III

  • Proteinecous Book IV

Chloro Anancyism

Prints interpreting the natural chlorophyll green hue as a healthy green banana leaf. —

“Chloro/Anancy-ism centers around the Leaf Kingdom, a world brought to life through the colors green and yellow. I wanted the prints to capture the lushness and vitality of the Leaf Kingdom, with the green tones symbolizing nature and life. The designs use different shades of green to evoke the sense of being immersed in the kingdom’s natural beauty, drawing on the deep connection between the characters and the environment.”

  • The Leaf Princess: “Her Sonnet”

  • Anancyism: Chloro & Anancy

  • Anancyism: Chloro, Anancy & Sig

  • Rio Grande

  • The Anancyism of the Leaf People

  • Gates of the Leaf Kingdom

“Who am i if not the leaf princess, the evocative muse to my creator. My body flows with the wind as I stand tall and firm through hurricanes, rainy seasons and droughts. My roots find solace in the Jamaican soil.The same soil of which i await my inevitable return to be nurtured for rebirth during a infinite life. Leaf. The bloodline that never ends.”

- The Leaf princess [ “Immortality of the leaf” ]

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Sigatoka

Sigatoka focuses on yellow and hues of browns.—

The Sigatoka sub-category draws from both the Sigatoka people in the story and the Sigatoka fungus that affects banana trees in Jamaica. The yellow and brown hues represent the struggle between life and decay. The color palette of yellow and brown reflects both the danger and the resilience of the Sigatoka people and the fungus itself. There’s a tension between the vibrancy of the natural world and the blight that can come with it, and the prints capture that complex dynamic.

  • Sig.1

  • Ashley

  • Second Skin Print

  • Essence of Sig

  • The Decay of the Sig

The Leaf Stills

In this portion of the Leaf Series the designer decided to curate a small collection of books signifying the process and inspiration collected during a field study of banana leaves in Jamaica. You will see banana leaves of at the beginning, middle and end stage of having infected Sigatoka leaves . These stills brings you from outside of the story back into reality. Seen through the lens of the designer.