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After in excess of 50 issues delving into the worldwide Black diaspora, this marks a concluding piece. The tenure proved deeply gratifying, with great appreciation extended to every one of the attentive audience.

Exploring the Accra Festival

Experiencing the exhibitions, artworks and shows of Accra Cultural Week, one sees how superior art feeds and builds a nation's past and essence. The highlight was undoubtedly the artist's remarkable [Dis]Appearing Rituals: An Open Lab of Now for Tomorrow, which put his pioneering afrogallonism for all to see: a philosophy that converts yellow jerrycans into illusory art pieces, mosaics of golden hues. The show was conceived as a homage to the resilience of Jamestown, a historic quarter of Accra.

This area – mainly inhabited by the Ga people, a fishing community – is also where a great number of returning Africans came back from South America and established themselves in the 1830s. Called the Tabom community, they carried with them Portuguese language and culture.

In every part of Jamestown, one observes a blend of architectural styles. You'll find a historic building, featuring its distinct Portuguese construction and arched doorways. One can also see the famous lighthouse of Jamestown, constructed in the 1800s and eventually given its signature red-and-white-striped facade.

Customs of Mourning

Equally remarkable about Jamestown is the pervasive sight of memorial notices. On every corner, be it affixed to alleyways or on larger signboards, one finds announcements and terms of mourning. In Jamestown, as throughout Ghana, final rites are significant communal events.

In the artist's breathtaking show, every aspect of the sensory and spiritual landscape of Jamestown are captured – notably in the immersive beach-themed piece. Here, visitors are calmed by the recording of crashing waves with granules at your feet, while shelters, hanging fishing nets and depictions of canoes celebrate its spirited, generational fishing community. However being present in this venue, the mind turns to the mountains of discarded clothing that threaten the aesthetics and tranquillity of the shoreline.

Apart from the Main Event

Accra Cultural Week also features additional highlights. Within an raw space at the local university, creator Reginald Sylvester II presented a deeply moving minimalist collection, an profoundly affecting, minimalist exhibition that displayed three-dimensional works and canvases produced in concert with metalworkers.

Another key element is the Yaa Asantewaa Art prize for female Ghanaian artists. It showcased the inaugural exhibition of a prior recipient, whose work draws on familial archival records to produce a depiction of life in post-independence Ghana. The event also crowned a latest champion, whose diverse work is intensely concerned with the weaving practices of women in a specific region.

A Lasting Impact

While the diaspora has more and more been pulled back to the region during the winter months, more and more are considering journeying some months earlier to experience the region’s festival period. Between this festival and other major events, what emerges are cultural ecosystems that are not merely new or “upcoming” but have established an complete world that is permanent.

Finally, the experience leaves one with a image of Accra that resembles a manifesto for ecological stewardship and the keeping alive of tradition. It is a compelling homage to resilience in all its expressions.