Out of Africa, into Asia

AFRICAN art has been rising in global prominence over the past few decades, gaining widespread recognition and contributing to a re-evaluation of African artistic expression. An upcoming exhibition staged by the Singapore-based non-profit The Institutum sheds light on this phenomenon, but pairs it with Asian art to find commonalities and convergences between the peoples of the two regions.

The ambitious show titled Translations: Afro-Asian Poetics features a galaxy of 100 stars of African and Asian descent. They include prominent practitioners such as El Anatsui, Theaster Gates, Zanele Muholi, Nick Cave, Noah Davis, Gordon Parks and Faith Ringgold – all of whom hail either from Africa or its diasporic communities scattered across the world – as well as Do Ho Suh, Tang Da Wu, Pacita Abad, Prabhavathi Meppayil, Lee Seung-taek, Martin Wong, Tuan Andrew Nguyen, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Robert Zhao and other art giants of Asian heritage.   

Set to open during Singapore Art Week, the show is curated by Zoe Whitley of London’s Chisenhale Gallery, who says: “Translations is really an opportunity to help us understand the synergies and shared experiences across a multitude of experiences. Whether they’re about diasporic experiences of displacement, or how we love our families and communities, or how we have to create new bonds with chosen families due to various circumstances, these works delve into a range of human experiences that are present across the African and Asian regions and their diasporas.”