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Following more than 50 issues exploring the international Black diaspora, this signifies a final piece. The journey was incredibly fulfilling, with great gratitude extended to every one of the attentive audience.

Exploring Accra Cultural Week

Experiencing the displays, artworks and performances of Accra Cultural Week, it becomes clear how exceptional art feeds and builds a country’s past and identity. The centrepiece was undoubtedly Serge Attukwei Clottey’s stunning a profound exploration of ritual and time, which displayed his groundbreaking afrogallonism in full view: a concept that transforms water vessels into illusory works of art, mosaics of metallic tones. The display was designed as a homage to the strength of Jamestown, a historic area of Accra.

This area – largely populated by the Ga ethnic group, a fishing community – is also where a great number of returning Africans returned from Brazil and established themselves in the 19th century. Called the Tabom community, they carried with them Brazilian tongue and culture.

In every part of Jamestown, visitors encounter a blend of architectural styles. There’s a historic building, boasting its unique Portuguese brickwork and curved entrances. Also present is the prominent beacon, constructed in the 1800s and later sporting its distinctive striped appearance.

A Culture of Mourning

Equally remarkable about Jamestown is the pervasive presence of funeral posters. Wherever you look, whether affixed to walls or on big hoardings, you’ll see service information and terms of farewell. In Jamestown, similar to the rest of Ghana, funerals are large-scale community celebrations.

In Clottey’s impressive exhibition, the entirety of the sensory and spiritual landscape of Jamestown are evoked – notably in the engaging beach-themed piece. Within it, one is relaxed by the sound of crashing waves with granules underfoot, while beach huts, hanging fishing nets and depictions of canoes celebrate its spirited, generational seafaring tradition. However being present in this venue, the mind turns to the mountains of cast-off garments that mar the aesthetics and tranquillity of the area.

Beyond the Headline Act

Accra Cultural Week also features additional highlights. Inside an unfinished structure at the University of Ghana, artist Sylvester exhibited On the Other Side of Languish, an emotionally powerful, minimalist exhibition that displayed three-dimensional works and paintings created in collaboration with welders.

And then there is the prestigious art award for women artists of Ghanaian origin. It included the inaugural exhibition of a prior laureate, whose work draws on familial archival records to produce a visual impression of life in the nation's recent history. The event also announced a current champion, whose diverse work is deeply invested in the textile traditions of women in Dabala.

An Enduring Legacy

While the overseas community has more and more been attracted back to west Africa in the western winter, more and more are thinking about travelling earlier in the year to experience the area's festival period. Between Accra Cultural Week and other major events, what emerges are creative communities that are not simply nascent or “upcoming” but have forged an entire world that is here to stay.

Ultimately, the journey provides a vision of Accra that resembles a declaration for environmental protection and the preservation of tradition. It is a powerful homage to perseverance in all its expressions.