In the Name of a Given God explores the religious protest embodied by the Legio Maria movement in Kenya, a sect rooted in the Luo community that emerged in the 1960s as a resistance to colonial Christian ideologies. Founded by Simeo Ondeto after his excommunication from the Catholic Church for asserting Christ’s African identity, Legio Maria challenged the dominance of the "white God" and redefined spiritual authority in a local context.

This series of collaged works draws from my own family history—Catholicism on my father’s side, and Legio Maria on my mother’s—tracing how these dual lineages shaped my cultural and spiritual upbringing. Central to this narrative are the matriarchs in both families, who acted as custodians of traditional Luo values and beliefs, reinforcing cycles of faith and cultural transmission.

Using image transfers, oil paint, and paper collage, In the Name of a Given God I & II depict young female followers of both faiths within the Luo region of Nyanza. The works reflect on the blurred boundaries between spirituality and organized religion, and the tensions between tradition and modernity. At its core, the project examines how belief systems evolve, especially when resistance itself becomes a form of spiritual reclamation.