France’s parliament has passed a new law allowing the permanent return of a sacred Ivorian drum taken by colonial troops in 1916. The Djidji ayôkwé talking drum (Image credit: © Pierre Firtion / RFI, December 2022.) The Djidji Ayokwè drum, once used by the Ébrié people of Côte…
Art Basel has appointed celebrated Egyptian artist and filmmaker Wael Shawky as Artistic Director of its inaugural Qatar edition, set to take place in Doha in 2025. The announcement marks a pivotal moment for the region’s cultural landscape, as the world’s leading contemporary art fair expands into the…
The Sharjah Art Foundation has named Angolan architect and curator Paula Nascimento as co-curator of Sharjah Biennial 17, set to open in January 2027. She will work alongside Berlin-based art historian and professor Angela Harutyunyan. Paula Nascimento. (Image credit: Raul Betti) Nascimento, born in Luanda in 1981, is…
Zimbabwean artist Richard Mudariki, known for his sharp political paintings and bold institutional critiques, was blocked from attending his own exhibition at Africa Basel after Swiss authorities denied his visa application. The irony? His show was about access, borders, and the global imbalance in artistic mobility. Richard Mudariki,…
The Museum of West African Art (MOWAA) in Benin City, Nigeria, has announced that it will officially open to the public on the 11th of November 2025. Initially announced in 2020, the MOWAA campus is designed as a 15-acre complex that will feature the MOWAA Institute for research…
Sudan Art Archive seeks to preserve Sudanese visual arts following a time where Sudan’s cultural memory has long been under attack through decades of state censorship and the effects of the devastating ongoing war that began in April 2023. As museums are looted and studios destroyed, the Sudan…
The 1952 Africa Foundation, in partnership with the HOW Foundation, has officially announced the shortlist for the 2025 Chizi Wigwe Prize for African Futurism. This distinguished $15,000 award celebrates visionary African artists who boldly explore the theme “Africa in 2100.” Designed to spotlight the power of imagination, the…
Yinka Shonibare has been announced as one of the key contributors to the Queen Elizabeth II National Memorial in central London. His involvement marks a bold and also thoughtful addition to a landmark that aims to honour the late monarch’s legacy with depth and nuance. Rendering of Foster…
Kaloki Nyamai (b. 1985, Kenya), founder of Kamene Cultural Center, and Michael Armitage (b. 1984, U.K./Kenya), founder of NCAI, are the newest additions to MOWAA’s inaugural artist council. They join West African artists Nengi Omuku (b. 1987, Nigeria), Victor Ehikamenor (b. 1970, Nigeria), Yinka Shonibare CBE RA (b.…
Sikelela Owen has clinched the 2025 Charles Wollaston Award at the Royal Academy for her oil painting Knitting. The £35,000 prize goes to the most distinguished work in the show, selected from more than 1,700 entries. Knitting by Sikelela Owen (Image credit: Royal Academy) Displayed in Gallery VIII, Knitting…
Prudence Chimutuwah presents The Artist’s Journey, a compelling documentary celebrating her work. On the 29th of June 2025, a powerful moment for Zimbabwean contemporary art unfolded at the screening of Prudence Chimutuwah: The Artist’s Journey, a new documentary celebrating the work of one of the country’s most compelling…
Adaobi Oraijiaku is the founder of Atsur. Atsur has been created to leverage web3 technologies to ensure and build the preservation of artwork and its information in Nigeria and Africa. With this, the goal is to equip African art ecosystem with the capacity for higher levels of investment…
Emmanuel Idowu, the 2023 Absa L’Atelier Ambassador, brings his solo exhibition Echoes of Innocence to Alliance Française. The show reflects on how childhood memories shape personal identity. Using symbolic imagery such as ropes, books, and baskets as well as drawing inspiration from Yoruba folklore, Idowu explores themes of…
STEVENSON presents Appellations and Speculations on Drawing by Meleko Mokgosi, taking place across the gallery’s Cape Town and Johannesburg spaces, jointly marking the artist’s third exhibition with the gallery. Where Mokgosi’s previous exhibitions in these cities formed part of Democratic Intuition (2013-19), an eight-chapter project examining the ways…
Gallery 1957 London and Arthur Timothy present Othello’s Countrymen (The Krio Enigma). In this latest work, Ghanaian-born British-Sierra Leonean artist explores the complex intersections of race, identity and belonging through the lens of the Krio people of Sierra Leone and their historical parallels with the figure of Othello…
The University of Johannesburg (UJ) has now opened applications for its 2026 Artists in Residence Programme. Initiated in 2022, this programme is designed to stimulate arts practice as research and is targeted at artist-academics working in a range of disciplines. Who Can Apply? The UJ Artists in Residence…
Zeitz MOCAA presents Cosmic Creatures and Constellations – a four day workshop series inspired by Zeitz MOCAA’s latest exhibitions including: UNDERSTUDIES, Selections from the Collection, Sala, and The Other Side of Now by artists such as Nolan Owald Dennis, Frances Goodman, Jody Paulsen, Cyrus Kabiru and Tuan Andrew…
Buhlebezwe Siwani presents Remember Our United Beginning, a monument commemorating The Hague’s Translantic Slavery. The Hague, Netherlands hosts the International Court of Justice and is therefore known as the global capital of justice. With that said, this monument serves as a long-overdue act of remembrance. On the 30th…
The first-ever Pan-African Architecture Biennale will open at the iconic KICC Towers in Nairobi, Kenya on September 1,2026. Curated by Italian-born Somali architect Omar Degan, in collaboration with the Architectural Association of Kenya, this inaugural edition positions the continent as a vital locus of innovation, resilience, and architectural…
Uganda has unveiled a major investment package targeting the country’s creative arts industry and technology sector, with Finance Minister Matia Kasaija announcing a Shs 66 billion allocation for creative arts. This is to be used towards plans to establish a state-of-the-art Hi-Tech City to drive innovation, job creation…