In They Came From The Water While The World Watched (2016-2019), Giya Makondo-Wills depicts indigenous South African Ancestral belief and Christianity in relation to missionary activity and the colonisation of the country, addressing the long-term repercussions of the 19th century European colonial agenda. She discusses the attempted dismantling of Ancestral religion and its replacement with Christianity whilst considering documentary photography and the Western gaze, and exploring the sanctity of keeping traditional beliefs alive and the adaptation to the world we know today. The complex interplay between Christianity and Ancestral religion manifests within the artist’s own family, where it is common practice to call on God and The Gods. Being both British and South African, Giya Makondo-Wills addresses the clash of beliefs from the point of view of the coloniser and the colonised. Embodying a dual perspective and with an exploratory approach, she highlights the symbiotic relationship between cultural elements and the resilience of pre-colonial customs in as they adopt a modern guise. The title They Came From The Water While The World Watched is a reference to the initial European migration and colonisation of South Africa and the Western world's indifference to the perpetration of this act.
