Exhibitions

Recent Histories: New Photography from Africa is still on view at The Walther Collection Project Space in New York, United States until December 17, 2016

The Walther Collection presents the third exhibition in its multi-year series on contemporary photography and video art from Africa and the African Diaspora. Presented thematically and surveying a varied range of work, the series builds upon the collection’s longstanding focus on African photography, providing a platform for engaging current practices. The series began in fall 2015 with The Lay of the Land, a group show examining the postcolonial African cityscape, and continued in spring 2016 with Close to Home, an exhibition highlighting new visions of portrait photography in Africa. The third installment, Recent Histories, features work by Simon Gush, Délio Jasse, Lebohang Kganye, Dawit L. Petros, and Zina Saro-Wiwa, five emergent figures from a new generation of multidisciplinary, lens-based artists dedicated to exploring African narratives from a diversity of perspectives.

Iké Udé – Nollywood Portraits: A Radical Beauty is still on view at MoCP – The Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago, United States until December 23, 2016

Starting in the early 1990s, Nollywood has quickly gained worldwide relevance as the world’s second most prolific film industry (almost 2,000 titles released annually) ahead of Hollywood and behind Bollywood with revenues topping $600 million annually. Historically, film in Africa had a European sensibility with parochial scenes laboriously captured on expensive celluloid, owing to the colonial funders. Nollywood, in contrast is characterized by independent cheap and quick filmmaking, capitalizing on the falling prices of digital recording equipment and meeting the demands of a continent for authentic stories that reflect the reality on the ground. In October 2014, Iké Udé returned to Lagos, Nigeria, after three decades away. Using his distinguished artistic style, Udé took photographs of 64 Nollywood personalities with the objective of celebrating these African celebrities.

Joël Andrianomearisoa – Last Year in Antananarivo is still on view at Tyburn Gallery in London, United Kingdom until December 23, 2016

The starting point of Last Year in Antananarivo is a series of photographs of a ball held by the French colonials in 1900 in Antananarivo which Andrianomearisoa found in FTM archives in Madagascar. This discovery set the artist on a journey, exploring the relationship between memory, pain and identity. In the images the Malagasy are dressed by the French in elaborate costumes to reflect the colonialists’ idea of a ‘civilised’ people. Andrianomearisoa plays on the inherent duality – the colonized and the colonizer, the past versus the present, pain and pleasure, the subjectivity of identity and the notion of ‘civilisation’. This is the first time Andrianomearisoa reflects directly on his Madagascan heritage. At the same time, the title of the exhibition, inspired by the French film Last Year in Marienbad, by Alain Resnais arises from the artist’s life and work in Paris. The aesthetic of the film, the timelessness and absence of any sense of temporality, inspires Andrianomearisoa.

Biennials

The 4th edition of Addis Foto Fest will open in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from December 15-20, 2016

Founded by award-winning photographer Aida Muluneh, the Addis Foto Fest was established in 2010 and organized by Desta For Africa Creative Consulting PLC. The Addis Foto Fest is the first international photography festival in East Africa and is recognized as one of the leading photography festivals on the continent. The fourth edition’s collection features 126 photographers from 40 countries across the globe with the objective of bringing together emerging and leading photographers during the weeklong event. The main objective of the Addis Foto Fest is to promote the global exchange of images in order to educate, inspire and foster understanding as it relates to photography from Africa and the global photography community. Each day of the Addis Foto Fest offers multiple events; not only are there featured exhibitions, but there will also be portfolio reviews, a conference and discussion panel, a live performance and exhibition at Fendika, as well as the inaugural Addis Foto Fest Awards ceremony.

La Biennale de Montréal is still open in Montreal, Canada until January 15, 2017

Le Grand Balcon [The Grand Balcony], the 2016 edition of La Biennale de Montréal, explores an unusual question: is hedonism possible today? The project posits the urgency of forming a materialistic, sensualistic approach to the world that mobilizes the capacities of both brain and body to their fullest. It sets out the challenge of developing an ethical hedonism and a joyous utilitarianism. Le Grand Balcon is presented by La Biennale de Montréal and co-produced with the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (MAC). Le Grand Balcon will feature new and/or recent works by 55 artists and collectives at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, La Biennale de Montréal’s main venue, and across a number of downtown spaces. This multi-site exhibition operates in parallel to a dynamic program of talks, performances, concerts, screenings and publications.