Roots and Reggae: Kassandra Lauren Gordon

1st October 3-6pm Cafe KOKO 74 Crowndale Road, #Ground Floor, London, England, NW1 1TP Roots and Reggae is a multi-media event celebrating British Jamaican culture and exploring reconnecting with your heritage as an adult with new eyes, understanding the significance of preserving the family legacy, heritage, practices and culture. Jewellery, adornment, moving images, and storytelling connects the old with the new. Kassandra is using creativity to preserve heritage, starting with jewellery. Through work as a fine jeweller Kassandra had conversations with clientele from various backgrounds that inspired her to think about family, tradition, and community plans for the future. Also, highlighting the importance of heirlooms and identity. Event programme... Braid my hair: exploring Black British braiding hair culture (live demonstration and talk) 3-4pm Exploring the relationship between the braider and braidee. London braider Styled by Sharn is doing a live demonstration of hair braiding on both women and men hair- whilst Kassandra ask her questions about the braider and braidee relationship and tips on caring on different braiding styles. We will also look at Black hair protecting styles installations: celebrating afro hair textures and styles: cornrows, braiding and faux locs British-Jamaican film screening: Kassandra Lauren Gordon shares short films she has created about Black-Jamaican culture 4-5pm. Roots and reggae jewellery film- celebrating Windrush generation and Jamaican culture influences in British society Gemstones:Lessons in unconditional love- celebrating Black womanhood , jewellery and adornment Jewellery Birth-creating jewellery at her studio film Love and Home- short film about Londoners exploring identity, love and heritage. Ring making:using wire wrapping technique 5-6pm Free family-friendly jewellery making using wire wrapping techniques. Wire and beaded jewellery made using wire wrapping techniques date back to thousands of years BC. Meet the Artist… Kassandra is a London-based award-winning multidisciplinary artist and multi-passionate person who through a journey of self-discovery found inspiration to channel the experience, texture, and voice of herself and her community into her craft. For Kassandra, her work has become more than creating bold and unapologetic pieces; her story lives in what she creates. In 2020 her lightbulb moment came as she started to express her own voice in her work and using it to support other people in different mediums . Kassandra Lauren Gordon Jewellery communicates the layered influences of British-Jamaicans; from the beauty and diversity of braiding and hair styling, to traces of imperialism and the intersectionality of spaces. The jewellery pieces are modern heirlooms, with a meaningful story to tell. As a signature detail, Gordon creates [double wrap twists braids/cornrows] to subtly frame the pieces - an important element of black culture and creativity that becomes a part of the beauty and meaning behind the jewellery. Kassandra klgjewellery.com kassandralaurengordon.com