The Magnolia State of Mississippi has long been a calling location for artistic inspiration. The state’s flora and fauna, vast stretches of rolling landscape, deep rooted culture and significant history has left an indelible desire for artists alike to portray the uniqueness of Mississippi through their craft. Photographer, Jai Williams, was among those stirred to experience the undeniable beauty for herself.
Jai Williams’ veins run with the blood of the South, her heart held captive by Texas, but equally sharing pieces of her soul with Alabama and Virginia. Place contributes to her work significantly. Her introduction to Mississippi was through the Delta, where she was recommended to travel to by a Louisianian four years ago to pursue artistic work. She made her way to the coast during the global pandemic: time was at a stand still, allowing Williams much contemplation on the subjects of life and death.
The discussion of juxtaposition and call of contemplation has been one that Williams claims Mississippians will always answer. She states her work discusses the oscillation between pain and exhilaration, past and present, progression and oppression; the vibrational message of her work is met parallel to her viewers. Much of her work pays homage to those of the past: she has captured the path of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, to the waters of which boats filled with African American’s once sailed. Williams’ pieces consult these topics through her objective desire to photograph landscapes: her most recent photography projects were centered around her pull to coastlines and unobstructed land.
Williams’ continues to explore the mystery of Mississippi through frequent traveling. Her craft has not only been influenced by her natural canvas, but also pulls inspiration and innovation from ancestral healing practices, reading, melodic compositions and the aura of orange. Orange, as she describes it, holds the characteristic of gentleness. Mississippi continues to connect with Williams on this spiritual plane as the State continuously impacts how she moves through the world.
Her desire to display her vision of the world through her lens began with her parents. Artistry courses through her genetics: her father admired photography and music, where her mother enjoyed films and performing arts. She states her household radiated vibrancy and love, which sewed the seeds of creativity throughout her childhood.
The blossoming of Williams’ creative talents are earliest remembered with fondness of photographing her grandmother. Williams’ recalls witnessing her lens portraying not just her grandmother, but a woman of wisdom. In that moment, she realized that her ability to captivate her grandmother’s soul was a remedy to heal parts of her heart through photography.
Williams’ continues to captivate the thoughts, dreams, and memories of Mississippi and its people through her camera, hoping to bring connectivity to her viewers by painting a narrative. She honors the Mississippians who vulnerably permit her to tell their stories as a way to graciously give back to state Williams’ now calls home.
To learn more about Jai Williams’ involvement in the Oxford community, contributions to the state, previous artwork, projects, and awards can be viewed through her website www.jaithephotog.com, or further on her social media platform @iamjaithephotog on Instagram.
By McKenna Sherer
