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Following in excess of 50 issues delving into the worldwide Black diaspora, this represents a last column. The experience proved incredibly rewarding, and sincere appreciation offered to all the dedicated readers.

A Look Inside Accra Cultural Week

Experiencing the displays, presentations and performances of Accra Cultural Week, it becomes clear how the finest art feeds and builds a nation's heritage and essence. The highlight was undoubtedly Serge Attukwei Clottey’s remarkable [Dis]Appearing Rituals: An Open Lab of Now for Tomorrow, which showcased his innovative afrogallonism in full view: a approach that transforms water vessels into illusory creations, tapestries of golden hues. The exhibition was designed as a tribute to the resilience of the historic district, a historic neighbourhood of Accra.

Jamestown – largely home to the Ga people, a fishing community – is also where numerous formerly enslaved people arrived from South America and established themselves in the 1830s. Known as the Tabom community, they introduced Brazilian language and culture.

Throughout Jamestown, visitors encounter a blend of building designs. Standing is Franklin House, boasting its characteristic Portuguese masonry and arched doorways. One can also see the famous beacon, constructed in the 1800s and later sporting its distinctive striped facade.

A Culture of Remembrance

Also notable about Jamestown is the pervasive sight of memorial notices. On every corner, whether affixed to alleyways or on sizable hoardings, there are funeral details and phrases of mourning. In Jamestown, mirroring customs in Ghana, memorial services are large-scale social gatherings.

In this impressive installation, the entirety of the sensory and spiritual landscape of Jamestown are captured – notably in the engaging shoreline work. In this space, visitors are calmed by the recording of ocean surf with granules at your feet, while beach huts, hanging fishing nets and depictions of canoes honour its vibrant, generational maritime community. However experiencing this venue, it's hard to ignore the mountains of cast-off garments that mar the aesthetics and tranquillity of the region.

Apart from the Centrepiece

Accra Cultural Week also features much more. Inside an incomplete building at the campus, creator Reginald Sylvester II showcased On the Other Side of Languish, an emotionally powerful, minimalist exhibition that included three-dimensional works and canvases created in concert with metalworkers.

And then there is the Yaa Asantewaa Art prize for women artists of Ghanaian origin. It showcased the inaugural exhibition of a recent winner, whose work draws on familial archival records to craft a visual impression of life in the nation's recent history. The event also announced a new winner, whose multidisciplinary work is deeply concerned with the weaving practices of women in a specific region.

A Permanent Presence

While the diaspora has more and more been pulled home to the region in the western winter, more and more are thinking about visiting some months earlier to experience the area's cultural season. Between Accra Cultural Week and similar gatherings, what is evident are cultural ecosystems that are not simply emerging or “upcoming” but have established an complete universe that is permanent.

Ultimately, the journey leaves one with a image of Accra that resembles a declaration for environmental protection and the preservation of culture. It is a resonant testament to perseverance in all its expressions.