Osei Bonsu – författare

The end of the Second World War witnessed the rise of Pan-African solidarity movements and the increased migration of African artists to European cosmopolitan centres. During Nigeria’s struggle for national independence in particular, artists drew upon diverse cultural traditions to navigate the country’s evolving social and political landscape, resulting in a rich and diverse body of work.This richly illustrated publication explores the multi-directional development of modern art in Nigeria from the period of British indirect rule to the years of national independence and post-independence, considering Nigerian art in relation to themes and ideas of Christian and Islamic art, traditional African sculpture, indigenous knowledge systems and Nigerian poetry and literature. Through their inventive and dynamic approach to art making, Nigerian artists challenged common assumptions and colonial narratives of African art within a global history of modernism. The book presents an historical overview of artistic perspectives with over 300 works by more than 50 artists spanning the period from 1945 to 1995. They include Akinola Lasekan, Ben Enwonwu, Ladi Kwali, Clara Ugbodaga-Ngu, Bruce Onobrakpeya, Uche Okeke, and Obiora Udechukwu. Highlighting the ways in which artists, writers and intellectuals negotiated the legacies of traditional Nigerian culture, European colonialism, and international networks of artistic modernity, Nigerian Modernism presents an important chapter of African art-historical life and reveals the enduring legacies of diverse traditions and artistic languages.

Over the past two decades contemporary African art has taken its rightful place on the world stage. Today, African artists work outside the confines of limiting categories and outdated perceptions; they produce art that is as much a reflection of Africa's tumultuous past as it is a vision of its boundless future. Far-reaching in its scope, African Art Now celebrates the diversity and dynamism of the contemporary African art scene across the continent today.Featuring the work of Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Michael Armitage, Amoako Boafo, Cassi Namoda, Cinga Samson, Zina Saro-Wiwa and many more.

Since the invention of photography in the nineteenth century, Africa has been defined largely by Western images of its cultures and traditions. From the colonial carte de visite and ethnographic archive to the rise of studio portraiture and social documents of racial surveillance, the fraught relationship between Africa and the photographic lens has become inseparable from the discourses of post-colonialism.Challenging these historical images of exoticism and otherness, this book illustrates how artists have used photography and video art to reimagine history and expand our understanding of contemporary realities.Bringing together a diverse range of artists and thinkers to present perspectives on issues such as spirituality, urbanism and climate change, this book reveals the many ways images travel across time and geography, and how artists are redefining perceptions of the world we inhabit.