- Title: Ghanaian artist's slavery installation is one of the year's most memorable
- Date: 26th December 2019
- Summary: ADA FOAH, GHANA (FILE) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF ARTIST, KWAME AKOTO-BAMFO WALKING THROUGH INSTALLATION OF CONCRETE HEADS REPRESENTING AFRICA'S ENSLAVED ANCESTORS CONCRETE HEAD OF ENSLAVED ANCESTOR CONCRETE HEAD OF ENSLAVED ANCESTOR CHAINED BY THE NECK (SOUNDBITE) (English) ARTIST, KWAME AKOTO-BAMFO, SAYING "What I hope to do is to capture an experience and let this art trigger a dialogue about who we are as an African people, who we were before and then where we are going, especially with something like the transatlantic slave trade and the sub Saharan slave trade and racism having happened as a result of this atrocity. So there isn't really a direct message, it's not about my message to the world but it's about some discussions that we need to have." KWAME SHAVING CLAY KWAME WORKING ON NEW SCULPTURE KWAME WORKING ON SCULPTURE WITH MODEL SAT IN FRONT OF HIM KWAME WORKING ON SCULPTURE WITH KITCHEN KNIFE (SOUNDBITE) (English) ARTIST, KWAME AKOTO-BAMFO, SAYING: "Previously I will pick a particular model based on the looks and then what I have in my head and what I want to portray but then over the years to cut down on the idealism that in the work, in the narrative and the people being portrayed, I will just model anybody who comes around. So that we will have enough representation of Africans who were enslaved cast across the world either (rather) than just focusing on Ghanaians or West Africans in general." VARIOUS OF AKOTO-BAMFO WORKING ON MOULD CONCRETE HEADS INSTALLATION A CONCRETE WOMAN'S HEAD (SOUNDBITE) (English) ARTIST, KWAME AKOTO-BAMFO, SAYING: "I think that the best way to celebrate these 400 years is to look at what these people, to honour the dreams of these people that we've lost and the dreams being that they were human beings, they had rights and their descendants should continue to have rights and be considered part of the citizens of the world." VARIOUS OF CONCRETE HEADS INSTALLATION (SOUNDBITE) (English) ARTIST, KWAME AKOTO-BAMFO, SAYING: "This land has that strong connection to what happened and I feel that, I feel and I know that it will make the impact telling the narrative that has been lost as a replacement of the fort that has been lost to the sea, I think that bringing this here will keep that knowledge alive about what we should avoid as a people." KWAME WALKING THROUGH INSTALLATION VARIOUS OF CONCRETE HEADS INSTALLATION
- Embargoed: 9th January 2020 12:34
- Keywords: Kwame Akoto-Bamfo Year of the Return art concrete heads commemorating slavery slavery
- Location: ADA FOAH, GHANA
- City: ADA FOAH, GHANA
- Country: Ghana
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA001BBM39EF
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The year 2019 marked 400 years since the commencement of the transatlantic slave trade.
For Ghanaian artist Kwame Akoto-Bamfo, the landmark was a perfect opportunity to showcase his latest project: hundreds of sculpted faces to represent the men and women who fell victim to slavery.
Akoto-Bamfo placed the sculptures in Ada Foah, which was a major slave market in the 19th century when the region was under British rule.
Akoto-Bamfo borrowed from the ancient Akan tradition of creating portraits of the dead.
Akoto-Bamfo's aim was to keep Ada Foah's history alive and start conversations about what happened here.
"What I hope to do is to capture an experience and let this art trigger a dialogue about who we are as an African people, who we were before and then where we are going, especially with something like the transatlantic slave trade and the sub-Saharan slave trade and racism having happened as a result of this atrocity. So there isn't really a direct message, it's not about my message to the world but it's about some discussions that we need to have," he said.
The sculpted portraits were the 'enslaved African' section of the Nkyinkyim (pronounced Cheen - Cheem) installation, a broader take on Ghanaian history.
He said he used to choose his models in the past to portray specific expressions and traits. But now he prefers to use random models so as to sculpt faces from all over Africa because people from all over the continent were enslaved.
"Previously I will pick a particular model based on the looks and then what I have in my head and what I want to portray but then over the years to cut down on the idealism that in the work, in the narrative and the people being portrayed, I will just model anybody who comes around. So that we will have enough representation of Africans who were enslaved cast across the world either (rather) than just focusing on Ghanaians or West Africans in general," he said.
Akoto-Bamfo said the installation is evolving and will continue to grow and expand across continents. He's added more sculptures over the last month.
The project began in 2010. Today he is working on several new pieces for museums in Montgomery and Birmingham, Alabama in the United States. One of his pieces already stands in the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Alabama.
Akoto-Bamfo believes the best way to remember the ancestors is to respect their descendants.
"I think that the best way to celebrate these 400 years is to look at what these people, to honour the dreams of these people that we've lost and the dreams being that they were human beings, they had rights and their descendants should continue to have rights and be considered part of the citizens of the world," Akoto-Bamfo said. - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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