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Following more than 50 installments exploring the global Black diaspora, this marks a concluding column. The experience proved incredibly rewarding, with immense appreciation directed to every one of the engaged readers.

Inside Accra Cultural Week

Experiencing the showcases, installations and shows of Accra Cultural Week, one sees how exceptional art feeds and constructs a nation's history and essence. The centrepiece was undoubtedly Serge Attukwei Clottey’s exquisite a profound exploration of ritual and time, which displayed his groundbreaking afrogallonism for all to see: a approach that reimagines plastic containers into captivating works of art, assemblages of yellow, brass and gold. The display was designed as a tribute to the strength of this area, a historical neighbourhood of Accra.

This area – predominantly populated by the Ga community, a community of fishermen – is also where a great number of returning Africans returned from Brazil and established themselves in the 1830s. Referred to as the Tabom community, they carried with them Portuguese language and culture.

In every part of Jamestown, you can see a blend of building designs. There’s a historic building, featuring its unique colonial-era brickwork and door arches. One can also see the iconic Jamestown Lighthouse, built in the 19th century and later sporting its distinctive banded appearance.

A Culture of Remembrance

Furthermore remarkable about Jamestown is the ever-present sight of obituary announcements. Wherever you look, whether covering alleyways or on larger signboards, there are service information and terms of mourning. In Jamestown, mirroring customs in Ghana, final rites are major community celebrations.

In Clottey’s breathtaking show, every aspect of the sensory and spiritual landscape of Jamestown are captured – notably in the engaging Jamestown nshonaa piece. Within it, you’re soothed by the recording of ocean surf with granules on the floor, while shacks, draped nets and representations of vessels honour its spirited, long-standing maritime community. However standing in this venue, the mind turns to the mountains of cast-off garments that mar the aesthetics and peace of the shoreline.

Beyond the Main Event

There is additional highlights. Inside an raw space at the University of Ghana, creator Sylvester exhibited a deeply moving minimalist collection, an incredibly moving, minimalist exhibition that displayed sculptures and canvases made in concert with welders.

And then there is the Yaa Asantewaa Art prize for women artists of Ghanaian origin. It showcased the first solo show of a recent winner, whose work utilizes historical documents to craft a visual impression of life in Ghana after independence. The event also crowned a new winner, whose diverse work is intensely concerned with the textile traditions of women in the Volta region.

A Lasting Impact

Although the overseas community has more and more been attracted home to west Africa in the winter months, more and more are thinking about travelling earlier in the year to engage with the region’s cultural season. Between this festival and other major events, what emerges are creative communities that are not simply nascent or “rising” but have forged an whole landscape that is here to stay.

Finally, the visit provides a image of Accra that serves as a declaration for ecological stewardship and the keeping alive of heritage. It is a powerful tribute to adaptability in all its manifestations.