Ejatu Shaw was born in London to Sierra Leonean parents who originated from the Fulani people of Guinea, in 1996, and grew up in Black, British and Muslim communities in and around London. Completing an MA in Photography Arts at the University of Westminster. her photographs explore the multifaceted aspects of her identity, blending elements from her Islamic faith and African heritage. Shaw's artistic practice is influenced by African studio photographers of the 1960s and 1970s, including Malick Sidibé from Mali, Sory Sanlé from Burkina Faso, and Omar Yahia Barram from Sudan, among others.
Photographer Ejatu Shaw was born in London in 1996 to Sierra Leonian parents who originated from the Fulani people of Guinea. She grew up in Black, British and Muslim communities in and around London, within what she described as a ‘loosely-ruled’ Muslim household (Karolle 2018). Like many second-generation diaspora Muslims, Ejatu confronted the challenges of reconciling life in a non-Muslim society with the traditional customs of her heritage. By the age of 11, she felt an urgent need to understand her place in her community, as she struggled with feelings of alienation resulting from the burden of cultural expectations placed upon her, as well as economic marginalisation that kept her from fully connecting with her white British peers. Her Arabic teacher's ambiguous advice led her to stop engaging in some of her childhood hobbies, such as painting, out of fear that they might be deemed haram, or ‘forbidden’; Shaw began wearing a hijab to more deeply explore her sense of belonging to the umma (community). However, a fracture remained: ‘I went from being British, to blindly being a Muslim and being Fulani, to then questioning it and asking why should I label myself’ (Post Script). She subsequently found that using social media and experimenting with photo-editing apps helped to restore her self-esteem as she pursued other forms of artistic expression. In 2020 Shaw completed an MA in Photography Arts at the University of Westminster (2018–20).
Her photographs explore her complex identity as a Black, female, Muslim British and the inherent connections it has to issues related to culture, race, and gender. Shaw's artistic practice is particularly influenced by African studio photographers of the 1960s and 1970s, including Malick Sidibé from Mali, Sory Sanlé from Burkina Faso, and Omar Yahia Barram from Sudan. According to Shaw, these photographers played an essential role in developing a Black visual language, and self-representation was a crucial factor in breaking the historical barrier of racial fetishism and creating a visual pleasure for the Black gaze (Emulsive). Shaw’s series Poly (2018) was commissioned by the independent cultural platform, Reform the Funk. Deriving its meaning from the word ‘plural’, the series reflected the artist's intent to delve into the multifaceted aspects of her identity rather than limiting herself to being labeled solely as ‘some Muslim girl’. Through this series, Shaw used photography as a means of embracing the boundless opportunities that arise from not allowing her religion to define her. Using her own family members as models, Shaw's photography, which is characterised by a diverse range of textures and colours, incorporates elements relating to Islamic faith and diasporic African identity. The work is a blend of the two cultures as well as her own evolution beyond them. Shaw links her Islamic faith and African heritage through recurring symbols, such as the crescent moon, jalamias, and hijabs, traditional coiffure, and a symbolic macromolecule representing plastic, the latter representing the firm structures of her upbringing, which she seeks to challenge. Shaw acknowledges that rejecting this aspect of her identity could be harmful, saying, ‘to damage these relationships and reject that side of myself - to burn that plastic - could be to release something toxic’ (Karolle 2018).
In 2020, Shaw participated in The Self Portrait (2020), an exhibition celebrating female Black self-portraiture, held at Home, a creative hub in north London, established by photographer Ronan Mckenzie. Her powerful self-portrait was taken in Sierra Leone, during her trip to visit her father’s grave. Having missed his funeral because of the COVID pandemic’s restrictions, this journey had a symbolic meaning. Whilst there, she contracted typhoid fever. She later recalled: ‘I was hallucinating […] and felt close to death. If anyone was going to capture what was going on with me it would have to be me. I was shaking as I pressed the shutter release […] This moment, I’m empty. I’ve lost my health and my father so I named it Tyvoid Fever. I’m trying to be as true to myself as I can. I aim to one day have a consistent sense of self, no matter who my audience is’ (Alemoru 2021). In 2022, Shaw received a commission from the Adobe Stock Artist Development Fund to create a project inspired by Black love, family and joy, featuring Black children and families enjoying their time together — playing basketball, roller skating, laughing, hugging. According to Shaw, the project addresses the lack of representation in media: ‘It’s so important to myself and many other Black visual artists that we continue to represent ourselves in a way that is relatable, ethical and inspirational’ (It’s Nice That). Her recent exhibition Whenever You’re Ready’ at West Middlesex University Hospital (2023) features a series of staff portraits that capture and celebrate the workforce at the hospital. Among Shaw’s clients are Etsy, Sunday Times, Dazed and Vogue. Her work is not currently represented in UK public collections.