In a recent week-long exhibition titled “Breaking the Mold,” eleven emerging artists from the Democratic Republic of the Congo displayed their work in a warehouse close to Alserkal Avenue, Dubai’s arts quarter. The artists, who were all former students of the Academy of Fine Arts in Kinshasa, the DRC’s capital, attempted to break free from the restrictions of their academic background; this is implied by the title.
A featured artist was the photographer Arlette Bashizi. Her “Re-construction” series of self-portraits challenges stereotypes and assumptions about black, African (particularly Congolese) women.
Multidisciplinary artist Chris Shongo gave Congolese women the status of Egyptian queen Nefertiti, to whom he traced the ancestry of African women, in his work “Nefercongo.” The group supporting Congolese art, Yetu Management, which recently built a gallery in Kinshasa, organized the exhibition.
At the most recent Abu Dhabi Art fair, some African artists were competing for the first time, demonstrating the UAE’s rising interest in African art. For instance, Kavita Chellaram’s Kó, an art space in Lagos, Nigeria, participated physically for the first time in 2021 after participating online in 2020.
The Afriart Gallery, situated in Kampala, Uganda, participated for the second time and displayed works by the Ugandan artists Mona Taha and Sanaa Gateja, with prices ranging from $4,000 to $30,000.
A more durable institution in the UAE art scene is the Efie Gallery, founded by the Ghanaian family Valentina, Kwame, and Kobi Mintah. It recently celebrated its one year anniversary at Al-Khayat Art Avenue in Dubai.
In the year since it first opened, Efie Gallery has hosted seven exhibitions, including the first solo show in the city for renowned Ghanaian sculptor El Anatsui and a collaboration exhibition with UK auction house Christie’s that featured El Anatsui’s work alongside quickly rising Ghanaian artists Isshaq Ismail and Yaw Owusu.
The development of Efie Gallery has been influenced by the growing demand for African art in the international art market.
According to a recent edition of ArtTactic’s Modern and Contemporary African Artist Market Report, which looks at auction sales between 2016 and 2021, African art has grown in popularity, with sales increasing by 44 percent in 2021, from $50 million in 2020 to $72 million last year. Additionally, contemporary art galleries around the world are becoming more eager to exhibit pieces from the continent.
Next, the Efie Gallery will host The Art of Advocacy, a display of pictures by Ethiopian photographer Aida Muluneh, which will be on view from January 12 through February 24.