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Following in excess of fifty editions navigating the international Black diaspora, this signifies a final column. The journey proved profoundly gratifying, with great appreciation offered to all the engaged readers.

Exploring Accra Cultural Week

Attending the displays, presentations and acts of this event, one sees how the finest art sustains and builds a country’s past and identity. The highlight was undoubtedly Serge Attukwei Clottey’s stunning a profound exploration of ritual and time, which put his innovative afrogallonism in full view: a approach that transforms plastic containers into illusory works of art, tapestries of yellow, brass and gold. The show was conceived as a homage to the resilience of Jamestown, a historical area of Accra.

The community – mainly populated by the Ga people, a community of fishermen – is furthermore where many freed slaves came back from South America and made their home in the 1830s. Called the Tabom people, they carried with them Portuguese language and culture.

Throughout Jamestown, one observes a fusion of building designs. There’s Franklin House, boasting its distinct European-style brickwork and curved entrances. One can also see the famous beacon, erected in the 1871 and subsequently featuring its recognizable red-and-white-striped facade.

Customs of Mourning

Furthermore remarkable about Jamestown is the ever-present sight of obituary announcements. Everywhere you turn, whether plastered over alleyways or on larger billboards, one finds funeral details and expressions of farewell. In Jamestown, as throughout Ghana, final rites are major community celebrations.

In this breathtaking installation, all of the sights, sounds and religious textures of Jamestown are present – especially in the enveloping beach-themed piece. Within it, visitors are calmed by the sound of crashing waves with beach material at your feet, while shacks, nets and images of vessels honour its vibrant, generational fishing community. However standing in this venue, the mind turns to the piles of textile waste that compromise the charm and peace of the shoreline.

In Addition to the Main Event

The festival program included a great deal more. Housed in an unfinished structure at the campus, artist Sylvester showcased On the Other Side of Languish, an profoundly affecting, austere presentation that featured three-dimensional works and paintings produced in collaboration with welders.

And then there is the competition for female artists for female Ghanaian artists. It included the debut presentation of a recent recipient, whose work draws on historical documents to create a artistic representation of life in the nation's recent history. The event also announced a new champion, whose multidisciplinary work is intensely invested in the textile traditions of women in a specific region.

An Enduring Legacy

While the overseas community has increasingly been attracted back to the region during the western winter, a growing cohort are contemplating visiting for the cultural season to experience the area's festival period. From Accra Cultural Week and other major events, what is evident are art scenes that are not merely nascent or “rising” but have forged an whole landscape that is permanent.

Ultimately, the journey leaves one with a image of Accra that serves as a statement for environmental protection and the preservation of tradition. It is a powerful homage to resilience in all its expressions.