Ayesha Tan Jones

Ayesha Tan Jones

Ayesha's work is a spiritual practice that seeks to present an alternative, queer, optimistic dystopia. They work through ritual, meditating through craft, dancing through the veil betwixt nature and the other. Ayesha weaves a mycelial web of diverse, eco-conscious narratives which aim to connect, enthral and induce audiences to think more sustainably and ethically. Traversing pop music, sculpture, alter-egos, digital image and video work, Ayesha sanctifies these mediums as tools in their craft.

Ayesha is the co-founder of Shadow Sistxrs Fight Club, a physical and meta-physical self defence class for women, non binary people and QTIPoC, combining Brazilian JuJitsu and magical/medicinal herbalism to create a holistic approach to self defence. Through community ritual and collective healing, the energy created at SSFC is powerful and creative. Fertile Souls is their community apothecary and survival skill share community which they founded who will be planting real seeds in real earth in 2021 in a project seeking to bioremediate toxic soil in North London.

YaYa Bones is their musical alter ego.YaYa Bones writes protest music for witches, non-binary love songs and apocalyptic lullabies for the gestation phase of the nu-awakening. Taking influences from the unheard sounds of the weeds pushing through concrete and the crackling of embers in the hearth, they create a symbiosis of operatic siren calls and technological earth beats, mantras of poetics and epitaphs to the cuthulucene. YaYa Bones’ meditational sounds are invoked for the ears of the ancestors past, the hearts of the ancestors in training, the queer warriors and all the plants we have been in our past lives. Their debut 4 track EP EARTHEART was released independently in 2020 with support from Serpentine Galleries General Ecology programme and is available to download on bandcamp, with profits going to land reparations collective Land In Our Names.

Selected recent commissions/exhibitions include: Shanghai Biennale (2021) Athens Biennale (2021) Solo Show at Underground Flower Offsite (2020) Serpentine Galleries, London (2019) IMT Gallery, London (2019) Mimosa House, London (2018), ICA, London (2018-2020) Cell Project Space, London (2018) Gropius Bau, Berlin (2018) Yorkshire Sculpture Park (2016-17).

Ayesha is represented by Harlesden High Street Gallery, London.


Image credit: Talie Rose Eigeland ( Parasites of Pangu @ Serpentine 2019)


Estuary 2021 is made possible by

Principal Partners

Creative_Estuary_New_1   ace

Major Partners

ecc uok thurrock thames_gateway selep medway  thames estuary   ebbsfleet    Ebbsfleet mayor locatekent kentcc gravesham uoe bas_coun   south_coun Here for Culture

Commissioning Partners

book_fest community_fund heritage_fund creative_coast bexleysalford fpg lesnes Essex2020Logo The Old Waterworks Logo UCA1

Festival Partners

arts_human uni_south uni_oxford uni_glas send_pier pla opp_se henley Flowers Gallery logoc2c roh southeastern Thamesmead2 Peabody2 BowArts3 raddison uber arriva Canterbury Dartford Faversham Swale1 Thanet Visit c2c1 Chat

Festival Supporters

essex_diversity SouthEssex1 UniversityCentre1 Churches International Exeter Wales Ramm Artist Grand