Alice Seeley Harris

"Miscreants" by Alexis Balaun

 

“Artists are useful to society because they are so sensitive. They are super-sensitive. They keel over like canaries in poison coal mines long before more robust types realize that there is any danger whatsoever.”   -Kurt Vonnegut. Vonnegut perfectly describes Alice Harris’s compassion for the voiceless men, women and children of the Congo. She broke past the sexism of the early 1900’s and used a brownie camera to start the first photographic human rights movement in history. The treatment of African men, women, and children under the hand of King Leopold II was toxic and Alice took notice like a canary being poisoned, bringing attention to to where necessary without any concern for her own safety.

 

Painting a representation of Alice's story was an emotional and eye opening experience. The International Slavery Museum represents how Alice became a hero. She and her husband went to central Africa. They worked as missionaries. Alice became a teacher to the children of the Congo, and treated them like human beings instead of treating them like animals as the sentries did. The kids and their mothers were often put into jail or beaten with whips made of hippo hide as punishment if their father was unable to collect enough sap from the rubber trees during the day. Alice was told to never spend time with the locals without someone to protect her. They thought the Africans were beasts. Alice refused to listen to their warnings. A man named Nsala came to her with a package wrapped in banana leaves. When Alice realized that the contents of the package were the hand and foot of his daughter she refused to let his story go unnoticed. She convinced him to take a photograph that showed all the pain and regret that a man feels when part of his soul is ripped out of  his exploited chest.  Nsala's wife and daughter were tortured, mutilated and then murdered by sentries because he could not collect enough rubber sap from the trees that day. This painting is a reminder that Alice was there. She observed and took pictures that explained more than any number of words ever could.

 

An interpretation of Alice’s story is told by “Miscreants”. The day after Nsala  lost his family the forest felt like a dank, gloomy grave. As he collected the bright white sap from the scarred trees he couldn't help slumping to the ground. Finally he was able to gently set down the banana leaf package that he had been clutching to. It held the remains of the people that used to make up his whole world. There are pinpoints of light in the thick canopy. Nsala’s story can save those around him with the help of Alice Harris. Taking a picture in the lower right, she revealed the white shadows of ghosts. As Nsala mourned his loss, his family watched over him, and Alice, a quiet bystander, documented what she saw so that the world could feel just a hint of the pain experienced in the Congo.

 

I have always striven to find what others couldn't. From a young age I could be found looking under every rock for a salamander.  The same fire was lit under my belly when I was given the opportunity to bring to life a forgotten story. I became obsessed with the idea and couldn't stop trying to find someone worth digging up. When I remembered a hint of the idea of some girl who took pictures in Africa from a history documentary I watched years ago, I took the idea and ran. I read every article I could find until I found Alice, and with every passing day I gained a better appreciation for what Alice accomplished. I wanted to capture Alice’s independence, strength, and her ability to cause change in a time period when women were not as valued as they are today. My love for painting and my love for Alice and Nsala meshed perfectly. With the help of friends and family I staged scenes from her story and took pictures to reference. I illustrated the heartache of Nsala with Alice’s canary-esque sensitivity when she lent her support to him after he experienced the worst thing that could happen to a husband and a father.

 

-Alexis Balaun