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After more than 50 editions exploring the worldwide Black diaspora, this represents a last dispatch. The experience has been incredibly gratifying, and great appreciation offered to all the engaged audience.

Exploring Accra Cultural Week

Visiting the displays, installations and performances of Accra Cultural Week, one sees how superior art sustains and constructs a nation's history and essence. The highlight was without doubt Serge Attukwei Clottey’s exquisite a profound exploration of ritual and time, which put his groundbreaking afrogallonism on full display: a concept that converts plastic containers into mesmerizing works of art, assemblages of yellow, brass and gold. The exhibition was designed as a testament to the resilience of this area, a venerable quarter of Accra.

The community – mainly populated by the Ga community, a fishing community – is additionally where many freed slaves arrived from South America and established themselves in the 19th century. Known as the Tabom, they carried with them Brazilian tongue and culture.

In every part of Jamestown, one observes a blend of architectural styles. There’s a historic building, with its unique Portuguese brickwork and curved entrances. One can also see the prominent lighthouse of Jamestown, erected in the 1871 and subsequently featuring its signature banded exterior.

Customs of Celebration

Equally notable about Jamestown is the pervasive presence of obituary announcements. Everywhere you turn, whether covering walls or on sizable billboards, you’ll see funeral details and expressions of loss. In Jamestown, similar to the rest of Ghana, funerals are significant community celebrations.

In Clottey’s impressive show, the entirety of the sights, sounds and religious textures of Jamestown are evoked – especially in the engaging beach-themed installation. Within it, visitors are calmed by the sound of crashing waves with beach material underfoot, while beach huts, hanging fishing nets and representations of boats honour its dynamic, long-standing maritime community. Yet standing in this gallery, one cannot help but think of the heaps of cast-off garments that mar the beauty and serenity of the area.

In Addition to the Headline Act

The festival program included a great deal more. Within an unfinished structure at the local university, creator Sylvester showcased a deeply moving minimalist collection, an incredibly moving, stripped-back exhibition that included three-dimensional works and artworks made in concert with welders.

Also featured was the competition for female artists for Ghanaian women creators. It included the debut presentation of a recent recipient, whose work references historical documents to create a artistic representation of life in post-independence Ghana. The event also crowned a new champion, whose diverse work is deeply invested in the textile traditions of women in a specific region.

An Enduring Presence

While the overseas community has more and more been pulled back to west Africa during the western winter, more and more are thinking about journeying earlier in the year to experience the area's festival period. From Accra Cultural Week and similar gatherings, what emerges are art scenes that are not merely nascent or “rising” but have established an entire landscape that is here to stay.

Ultimately, the experience leaves one with a perception of Accra that feels like a declaration for conservation and the preservation of culture. It is a resonant tribute to perseverance in all its expressions.