Creativity
Contemporary culture in Senegal: Dak’art 2008 ‘Afrique: Miroir?’
As in all art biennials, the appointment in Senegal for Dak’art, the only pan-African project for contemporary art in the world, is an extraordinary one not to be missed and a wonderful excuse to visit one of the most stimulating cultural centres in Africa. Created by the renowned Senegalese poet, intellectual and founding President Léopold Senghor, who started up the ‘Festival des Arts Nègres’ in 1966 to promote modern Afro-centric culture in direct confrontation to European colonialism, Dak’art was revived in the late 1980s.
Ndary Lô, Green wall, Dak’art 2008 ‘Afrique: miroir?’ Photo by Valentina Peri
This year’s edition, entitled ‘Afrique: Miroir?’ (‘Africa: A Mirror?’), was open from 9 May to 9 June and was bigger and more interesting than ever. It included not only artists from all over Africa but also parallel projects involving African design, fashion, and music as well as conferences and debates covering a wide range of international cultural projects, including new media.
130 exhibitions for a Senegalese project
The official ‘vernissage’ at the Musée T. Monod (IFAN) was inaugurated by President Wade himself, who eloquently defended the importance of contemporary culture in Senegal as a tool for both international cooperation and national development. Indeed, this project is Senegalese, funded and organised by a Steering Committee headed by Ousseynou Wade and presided by new entry Gérard Senac, collector and art patron, director of Eiffage, one of Senegal’s important companies and sponsor of Dak’art. Included in the group are Gilles Hervio, Head of the European Commission Delegation, Thierry Raspail, Director of the Biennale de Lyon in France, Goran Christenson of the Malmö Museum in Sweden as well as many African specialists and artists such as Abdoulaye Konaté, Sithabile Mlotshwa of the Thamgidi Foundation, art professor Maguèye Kassé, and agit-prop maestro Issa Samb.
With more than 130 exhibitions throughout the city and the outlying regions, the exhibition was divided into the ‘in’ official sites (IFAN, the National Museum of Art, and the newly-restored Galérie Le Manège) including some 35 established artists such as Fathi Hassan and Ndary Lo, as well as a myriad of ‘off’ situations curated by long-time resident Mauro Petroni. An extraordinary new architectural complex created on the Cornice was the site for an important retrospective for the great Senegalese master Iba Ndiaye. Equally interesting this year was ‘Regards sur cours’, where some 50 private courtyards (including the villa of George Soros!) on the Island of Gorée opened to the public for the week-end, each hosting an artist. Stimulating was a parallel action in the Gorée atelier of celebrated artist M. Dimé showing young Dakar video artists linked to free Dimension, an international platform linking artistic communities to social justice, was stimulating.
A truly international venue
This year, the base of operations was a hospitable ‘village’ constructed at the ex-IFAN where journalists and public could meet and greet, see a series of videos and participate in the various encounters with such notables as curator and writer Simon Njami (creator of “Africa Remix” director of the ‘Rencontres africaines de la photographie’ in Bamako, Mali), the Angolan Fernando Alvim (organizer of the Pavilion of African Art at last year’s Venice Biennale), and Salah Hassan of the Forum for African Arts. Equally interesting were contacts with Senegal artists and journalists such as famed cartoonist T.T. Fons, creator of ‘Goorgoorlou.’ The art villa, Ker Thiossane, hosted an interesting festival entitled Afro Pixel based on the participation of African artists using Internet and digital media. Elio Grazioli of Milan and ‘Lettera 27’ headed a debate on the creation of WikiAfrica Art conceived for Wikipedia.
Dak’art is a truly international venue and there were exhibits by artists from Spain, Germany, France, and the Canary Islands as well as Israel in the many venues. Of course, Senegal and its artists were important protagonists; one of the most qualified exhibits was a one-person installation and performance by V. Diba at the gallery of Joelle Le Busy Fall.
As in previous years, the extraordinary fashion designer, Oumou Sy, organised not one but three separate fashion shows with young Senegalese designers, as well as her own work – all in her space Metissacana. The ‘Théâtre Nationale Daniel Sorano’ produced an original production of Wole Soyinka’s ‘La Mort et l’Ecuyer du Roi’, and the various nightclubs such as Just for You and Pen’Art were destinations for those who wanted to end the night with local music and dancing.
*Art expert and director of the Art Gallery ‘Sala 1’ in Rome (Italy).
Dak’Art 2008 Awards:
Grand Prix ‘Léopold Sédar Senghor’:
Mansour Ciss Kanakassy
Ndary Lo
Minister for Culture and Historical Heritage Award:
Nkosikhona Ngcobo
European Union Award:
Johann Van Der Schijff
Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie Award:
Jems Robert Kokobi
Culture France Award (Afrique et Caraïbes en création):
Guy Bertrand Woueté Lotchouang
Award from the City of Dakar:
Amadou Kan Sy
‘OFF’ Award from the European Union:
First: Mbaye Ndoye, painting
Second: Mamadou Faye, design
Third: Ibrahima Niang (in art Piniang), video
Special mentions (IN/OFF) :
- Saïdou Dicko, photo
- Ousmane Mbaye, design
