ANOTHER LIFE

ANOTHER LIFE is a visual record of the fifteen years Tito West spent living and working across much of sub-Saharan Africa. After leaving Texas in his early 20's, Tito embarked on a journey of self-discovery in search of his place in the world, driven by a desire he didn’t fully understand at the time. This work chronicles his path, shaped by the loss of his father, as he sought to find himself and ultimately discovered a sense of home in remote safari camps across rural Africa.

I think of river crossings on old barges or dugout canoes, salmonella poisoning, forest fires and massive storms. I hear the violent scream of a silverback gorilla deep in the forest - shaking the trees, beating his chest, then vanishing. I think of rain, dust and bees; the reenactment of a hunt and a bongo skull dancing in the half light of the fire. I see a French bible and pygmies with sharpened teeth, dead elephants, 7.62mm shell casings and the barefoot track of a lone poacher. I recall stories of Loa Loa - the eye worm parasite - and how the old timers used to pour paraffin on their feet after crossing rivers. I think of massive columns of ants and chimpanzees in the early morning mist and see logging trucks overturned on forest roads. The snakes - Green Vipers, Gaboon Vipers and a Mamba in the canopy.

- Excerpt from the intro to Another Life