"A History of Contemporary Art in Mozambique in 4 Weeks"

Part art residency, part workshop, and part informal art academy, Àsìkò Art School has been attracting young artists from all over Africa for 4 weeks of seminars, classes, exchange and conversation about the changing landscapes of artistic practices and the need for more curatorial initiatives in the African continent. This year in its 5th edition, Àsìkò Art School has been held in Maputo, Mozambique.

Over the course of 28 days the participants have been engaging in critiques, discussions, lectures, and presentations led by guest faculty including artists and curators from Africa and beyond. Using the 40th anniversary of Mozambican independence, celebrated on 25 June 2015, as a starting point, they have engaged the collective histories of the states of Eastern and Southern Africa to explore African and African Diaspora cultural production.

The final project, “28 Words in Maputo”, attempts to engage through sound, installation and performance the period that the artists and curators have spent in Maputo. Using language as a point of departure, the idea of the dictionary is employed to give meaning to the time, experiences and impressions of the participants, through a selection of words, pronunciations and inflections as well as discovered etymologies.

These experiences are articulated through the presentation of a visual playlist consisting of 28 words, an installation that defines the experiences with food and with the sights of Maputo, and a performance that represents the words spoken in the ‘Chapa’, the public transport van used in the city.

Participating artists; Kelvin Haizel, Ghana; Euridice Kala, Mozambique; Gladys Kalichini, Zambia; Mario Macilau, Mozambique; David Daut Makala, Zambia; Anderu Immaculate Mali, Uganda; Mapopa Manda, Zambia; Nancy Mteki, Zimbabwe; Mulenga Mulenga, Zambia; Ian Mwesiga, Uganda; Gresham Nyaude, Zimbabwe.

Curated by Gadi Ramadhani, Tanzania, Fitsum Tefera, Ethiopia, and Jepkorir Rose, Kenya.