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Goings-on in Ghana By Ekow Barnes
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n 2019, Ghana made headlines when it debuted its first national pavilion at the Venice Biennale, designed by celebrated Ghanaian-British archtect David Adjaye. The groundbreaking exhibition displayed sculptures, paintings, and photographs from six artists of Ghanaian descent in a curving, ocher-colored space resembling a Gurunsi earth house, a traditional dwelling made from a mix of clay, soil, and straw. That same year, thousands of foreign tourists touched down in the capital city, Accra, for the Year of Return, a campaign aimed at reuniting members of the African Diaspora in commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the landing of enslaved people in the United States. The multiday event was a celebration of the pan-African experience, with film screenings, poetry readings, and a concert so ambitious it was billed as Afrochella. The momentum didn’t stop there: last year, a striking elevated concrete gallery was unveiled at the Nubuke Foundation, one of Accra’s top art institutions, which has exhibited works by homegrown talents including photographer James Banor and sculptor and painter Kofi Setordji. And these are just a few examples of the country’s growing influence. To get a full picture of the scene, we spoke to the nation’s young generation of tastemakers for their local recommendations.
Raised between Ghana and various cities in the U.S., the 26-year-old singer-songwriter is known for pioneering a distinctive Afro-fusion sound that’s heavy on R&B influences. In April 2018, Apple Music Africa dubbed her a favorite New Artist, and last November, she released her debut studio album, The Angel You Don’t Know, which Pitchfork selected as a Best New Album in November 2020. Her go-to spot to shop for music in Accra is God’s Time Vinyl, a stall in the downtown Arts Center market specializing in hard-to-find records from African artists like Fela Kuti and Ebo Taylor.
STEVE FRENCH “I draw a lot of my inspiration from Ghana’s art, mujsic, culture, and history,” says the up-and-coming fashion designer, whose colorful,
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billowing garmentsprinted in bright shapes and patterns-have been worn by the likes of Naomi Campbell. In 2019, he won a coveted
