AKKA Project is thrilled to announce the fifth and final chapter of African Identities, group exhibition. For the last Chapter 5, the gallery is showcasing works by Gonçalo Mabunda, Reinata Sadimba, Filipe Branquinho, Margaret Ngigi and Peter Mukhaye.
These talented artists come from a fresh new wave of creativity which interacts with the Continent tradition, but at the same time explores different social themes and narratives that characterize contemporary African society. On the occasion of the 59th Venice Art Biennale, AKKA Project’s main aim with African Identities exhibitions, is to promote contemporary art from Africa to a wider
international public.
Chapter V – participant artists:
Gonçalo Mabunda
Gonçalo Mabunda is a contemporary artist living and working in Maputo, Mozambique. Gonçalo is extremely attentive to the collective memory of his country of origin, recently upset by a long civil war. From the deactivated weapons collected in 1992 during the war, Mabunda realizes anthropomorphic figures from pistols and rocket launchers, representing the power of art and creativity of the African community.
Reinata Sadimba
Reinata Sadimba was born in 1945 in Homba, Mozambique, from a Makonde family. Reinata is actually considered one of the most important women artists in the African continent; as a sculptor, the artist realizes human figures and social scenes, starting from the traditional processing of pottery.
Filipe Branquinho
Filipe Branquinho is a multi-disciplinary artist, educated as an architect, but then focused on his career as a photographer and graphic illustrator. Deeply connected to the artistic and journalistic atmosphere of Mozambique, which he comes from, Branquinho creates his works fusing together portraits and landscapes views, proposing important meditations on contemporary African society.
Margaret Ngigi
Margaret Ngigi is a talented photographer from Kenya. Women have always been and still are the focus of the artistic and stylistic process by Ngigi, who is a passionate feminist, committed with other social themes such as mental illness, to wich the artist dedicated some of her photographic projects.
Peter Mukhaye
Peter Mukhaye is a young self=taught conceptual photographer, born in Nairobi, Kenya. His artistic trait develops around African Futurism, and it focuses on deep concepts, such as sustainability, mental illness, and the emancipation of African culture in the world.
The Concept: African Identities
African Identities group exhibition aims to highlight the importance of the Arts and Artists from the African Continent. The exhibition will run from April to November 2022. The first edition of African Identities will focus on the art scene of some of the East African countries Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Mozambique. Counting on so many different ethnic groups and cultures, talents, and styles, AKKA Project aims to present and gather these many artists, including established and young talents, under one roof, giving them an opportunity for fruitful dialogues.
Each territory has mastered its unique distinctiveness. Individually each has bloomed from the fertile soil and risen to diverse original contemporary artists who masterfully experiment with new subjects, styles, and materials. AKKA Project aspires to create a unique and enriching experience, allowing visitors to discover the artists’ stories and works in Venice during the period of La Biennale 2022, which takes place from 23 April to 27 November.
All this is African Identities: a unity cluster of artworks and artists from Africa. We have included the list of participating artists for Chapter II of African Identities group exhibition.