S6E6 - Lila Zotou on Photography, Medical Obstacles and Grief

Lila Zotou lived and obtained her first BA in Visual Arts in Greece.  After that, she went to the Netherlands where she graduated with a  Master’s Degree in Fine Arts at Utrecht University of the Arts. There she lived for 7 years and it was an experience that shaped her professionally and developed the ideology that she desired to approach her creative thinking.    In Oslo, she got motivated working as a freelance photographer, photo  instructor and occasional curator. Her artistic practice ranges across notions of identity, belonging and place. Lila uses all kinds of photography such as vernacular photography, peripatetic photography, and visual storytelling to explore the world around her and her role in it.  It was in Oslo that she learned more about herself and developed  creative practices as an act of self-care.   Lila talks about her experience with the Norwegian health system. She suffered some major medical obstacles in getting reproductive health treatment and not getting the help that she needed from the hospital.  Lila got exhausted during the process of getting follow-ups whilst also overcoming grief. The waiting times in the hospitals were also too long and it seemed like they did not want to prioritize her.    And a huge big thank you to Oslo International Hub for allowing us to use their venue.    The Oslo Desk Podcast Season 6 - Surviving or Thriving in Norway.   Interviewer: Ka Man Mak   Film Production: Andre Percy Katombe   Podcast Production: Ka Man Mak & Julien Kaseya    The Oslo Desk is building a leading media house to portray racialised immigrant communities more accurately and completely. Most of our work is conducted by dedicated journalists and storytellers. If you would like this work to continue and can make a contribution, please go to https://buymeacoffee.com/oslodesk.