A Homage to Fortitude: What We Can Glean from the Brilliance of Accra Cultural Week.

Following in excess of 50 issues navigating the global Black diaspora, this signifies a concluding column. The journey proved incredibly rewarding, with immense thanks directed to all the attentive readers.

Inside Accra Cultural Week

Visiting the displays, presentations and performances of this event, it becomes clear how exceptional art nourishes and constructs a country’s history and essence. The highlight was certainly the artist's remarkable [Dis]Appearing Rituals: An Open Lab of Now for Tomorrow, which displayed his pioneering afrogallonism on full display: a philosophy that converts yellow jerrycans into mesmerizing works of art, mosaics of golden hues. The exhibition was created as a tribute to the endurance of Jamestown, a historical quarter of Accra.

Jamestown – predominantly populated by the Ga people, a fishing community – is additionally where a great number of formerly enslaved people arrived from Brazil and established themselves in the 1830s. Called the Tabom people, they introduced Brazilian language and culture.

All across Jamestown, visitors encounter a mix of architecture. You'll find Franklin House, boasting its characteristic European-style brickwork and door arches. One can also see the famous Jamestown Lighthouse, built in the 1871 and subsequently given its signature banded appearance.

A Culture of Remembrance

Also striking about Jamestown is the ever-present presence of obituary announcements. Wherever you look, whether covering buildings or on sizable signboards, there are announcements and expressions of loss. In Jamestown, mirroring customs in Ghana, memorial services are major communal events.

In the artist's breathtaking installation, the entirety of the sights, sounds and religious textures of Jamestown are captured – particularly in the enveloping Jamestown nshonaa work. Here, visitors are calmed by the sound of the sea with beach material underfoot, while shacks, hanging fishing nets and depictions of boats honour its dynamic, long-standing maritime community. But standing in this gallery, one cannot help but think of the heaps of textile waste that threaten the charm and tranquillity of the area.

Beyond the Main Event

The festival program included additional highlights. Inside an raw space at the local university, creator Sylvester showcased On the Other Side of Languish, an incredibly moving, austere show that included sculptures and artworks produced in collaboration with welders.

And then there is the competition for female artists for female Ghanaian artists. It showcased the first solo show of a 2024 winner, whose work references historical documents to produce a visual impression of life in the nation's recent history. The event also announced a current winner, whose multidisciplinary work is intensely concerned with the craft techniques of women in a specific region.

A Permanent Legacy

While the diaspora has increasingly been pulled back to the region during the western winter, more and more are contemplating journeying some months earlier to immerse themselves in the region’s cultural season. From Accra Cultural Week and regional art fairs, what you’ll find are art scenes that are not simply new or “rising” but have forged an complete universe that is here to stay.

In the end, the visit provides a vision of Accra that resembles a declaration for environmental protection and the keeping alive of culture. It is a resonant testament to resilience in all its forms.