1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair Brings Meaning to Malt House

Upon entering the expanded fair yesterday, we were greeted by enticing wall hangings by Ange Dakouo and sculptures by Pedro Pires on low plinths in LouiSimone Guirandou Gallery’s booth. Commonly mistaken for textiles, Dakouo's work defies the eye with woven works on paper. Of his work, he said, "My technique, which I call 'the woven gris-gris' is inspired by the amulets worn by Malian traditional hunters—the Dozos. I customize my 'gris-gris' with cardboard and newspapers, and then weave them together to create a harmonious universe, through which the 'gris-gris' represent people who are supposed to protect each other."

Pires's works, featuring colorful wax fabric faces, are part of a series named "...for the future." Of the creations, he stated, "I choose to think about the future using the wax fabrics which carry heavy symbolism from the past and are controversial due to their history. For me, it opens a space that talks about status, history, past, and identity."

Across the hall, we were drawn to Eric Firestone Gallery's solo presentation of Sana Musasama's sculptures hanging on the wall, as well as ceramics displayed on tabletops. For the show, the Brooklyn-based African-American feminist artist and activist showed works that reflected her mantra, "Inspire, Commit, Act," including new and existing pieces across several series. They are also in dialogue with furniture and design items from her personal home and studio in Queens, as well as pieces she's collected over years of international travels.

Swirls of pink and yellow visually danced from canvases within DADA Gallery's booth. Created by the Nigerian artist Fidelis Joseph, the oil and acrylic pieces communicated the artist's deep relationship with his heritage and experiences. On his website, the artist's statement reads, "The intention of my work is to build a strong framework that fuses my direct and indirect life experience in northern Nigeria and the everyday information I collected from news media, in constant exploration of the profundity of the human condition."

Then, at KATES-FERRI PROJECTS, a grouping of works featuring nylon pantyhose made us look twice. Shown alongside gorgeous ceramic sculptures like Healing Device by Rudy Shepherd, the works in question were created by Turiya Magadlela, showing tights stitched together and stretched over duck cotton canvases to convey the artist’s concerns with female equality. "I draw to matters that concern me, such as the way women are treated in my country of Africa, with the violent cutting of female circumcision in newborn babies and young girls," she said of the work. "I speak to the misfortunes of inequalities in female-based industries as well as matters such as ageism, racialism, and how capitalism without concern for moral values has left many women and children in hell holes all around the world.” 

At THK Gallery, the Johannesburg, South Africa-based visual artist Lulama Wolf's bold figures guided our eyes into the booth. Featured on canvases were creations that blurred Neo-Expressionism and Modern African art, creating dialogue around the pre-colonial African experience through techniques used in vernacular architecture—including smearing and scraping, as well as the use of deep pigment.

Still on the ground floor, we caught a live presentation of "Lunch with Leroy," featuring a man cooking pasta amid scrapbooks, fresh produce, and sculptures of produce before winding up in Galerie Carole Kvasnevski's booth. Acrylic, weaving, and cotton embroidery on canvas works by the Bamako-based artist Ibrahim Ballo captured our attention for their color and texture.

Upstairs, we wandered into Galerie Number 8's gorgeous show of images, immersed in the various themes of photography by Djeneba Aduayom, Delali Ayivi, and Mar+Vin. High-fashion portraits and joyous scenes of play popped from the frames, showing bright colors, patterns, and textures that evoked fantasy, wanderlust, and nostalgia.

At the Lagos, Nigeria-based gallery Kó Art Space, we couldn't stop staring into the depth of a layered, collage portrait by Mobolaji Ogunrosoye. Through distorted photography and collage, the artist's work explores the idea of perception, as well as selfhood, body image, and personal identity. Here, the multi-layer collage, featuring burned and cut pieces to create depth, felt both eerie and beautiful, complex and calm.

In the booth next door, Afikaris returned with great new works by Mallory Lowe Mpoka and Saïdou Dicko, as well as works by Salif Lindou—a recognizable artist the gallery showed last year—that were not present prior. In paticular, the diptych work entitled Inheritance (Double Portrait) by Mpoka—a 27-year-old artist from Canada—hooked us for its layered mediums, contemporary portraiture, and physical connection.

Finally, the star of the show presented itself between floors and their snaking rooms at London's Rise Art. Hung in the hallway from the ceiling to the floor was a tapestry by Nelson Makamo. This is a rare occasion for the South African artist, primarily known for his drawings and paintings, to present a textile work. Shown for the first time outside of South Africa, the enormous piece was hand-woven in collaboration with a team of artisans. Combining his signature style with a gridlike weaving technique, the creation shows a child hopefully looking at the viewer, reminding us of the hope, happiness, and