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In the wake of in excess of fifty issues navigating the international Black diaspora, this signifies a final column. The tenure was incredibly rewarding, with great thanks offered to all the attentive audience.

Inside the Cultural Week

Experiencing the displays, artworks and shows of the festival, it becomes clear how the finest art feeds and builds a nation's history and character. The highlight was undoubtedly the artist's exquisite a profound exploration of ritual and time, which displayed his innovative afrogallonism for all to see: a concept that converts yellow jerrycans into mesmerizing works of art, assemblages of golden hues. The show was created as a tribute to the endurance of the historic district, a historical quarter of Accra.

This area – mainly inhabited by the Ga ethnic group, a seafaring people – is also where many formerly enslaved people returned from Brazil and settled in the 1830s. Called the Tabom, they carried with them Brazilian language and traditions.

In every part of Jamestown, you can see a mix of building designs. You'll find Fort Vicentia, featuring its unique Portuguese masonry and curved entrances. Another landmark is the famous Jamestown Lighthouse, erected in the 19th century and eventually sporting its distinctive banded exterior.

A Culture of Mourning

Equally striking about Jamestown is the ever-present presence of obituary announcements. Everywhere you turn, be it covering walls or on larger hoardings, there are announcements and terms of mourning. In Jamestown, mirroring customs in Ghana, funerals are large-scale communal events.

In Clottey’s impressive installation, every aspect of the sights, sounds and religious textures of Jamestown are evoked – notably in the engaging beach-themed piece. In this space, you’re soothed by the audio of the sea with sand underfoot, while shelters, nets and images of boats celebrate its dynamic, multigenerational maritime community. But being present in this gallery, it's hard to ignore the piles of textile waste that compromise the beauty and peace of the region.

In Addition to the Headline Act

Accra Cultural Week also features a great deal more. Within an unfinished structure at the local university, artist Sylvester exhibited On the Other Side of Languish, an incredibly moving, minimalist show that included sculptures and artworks produced in collaboration with metalworkers.

And then there is the Yaa Asantewaa Art prize for women artists of Ghanaian origin. It included the inaugural exhibition of a 2024 laureate, whose work utilizes familial archival records to produce a depiction of life in post-independence Ghana. The event also announced a latest champion, whose diverse work is deeply concerned with the textile traditions of women in Dabala.

A Permanent Presence

Although the global African community has increasingly been attracted back to west Africa in the western winter, a growing cohort are thinking about journeying earlier in the year to immerse themselves in the area's festival period. Between Accra Cultural Week and similar gatherings, what is evident are creative communities that are not simply emerging or “rising” but have established an complete world that is enduring.

In the end, the experience provides a vision of Accra that feels like a declaration for environmental protection and the safeguarding of tradition. It is a compelling homage to resilience in all its manifestations.