The exhibition is expanded through community engagement activities, including talks and a performance art presentation. The exhibition is curated by the Foundation for Contemporary Art–Ghana (FCA-Ghana) and TM Projects, in collaboration with Liwan Design Studios, ARAK Collection and VCUArts Qatar.
This exhibition combines performative interventions with works of 13 contemporary artists from 5 African countries,reflecting tendencies that are not entirely representative of their local scenes, but carry a deep sense of Pan-African concerns. Whether the artists are literally using cloth, fibres, or fabrics in their work, or they are making references to indigenous practices of weaving, albeit through techniques and materials that are not necessarily tied to cloth, these artists are significant masters in their approaches to material, experimentation, concepts and concerns in exciting and innovative ways. Some of them are activating narratives out of the very fabric of society, borrowing techniques from such diverse fields as collage, applique or even batik, whilst contesting artificial national borders. The objects, texts and works they eventually make, elicit interpretations that can illustrate the complexities of perception around contemporary African art coming into dialogue with such expanded geographies as Southeast Asia and the Gulf Region.
The title for the show has been woven out of the names of three examples of cloth in the Kente weaving tradition: Adwinasa, Nsasawa and Damedame. Adwinasa implies the exhaustion of all creative talent into the making of a cloth that could best be described as a masterpiece. Nsasawa is a type of Kente cloth that has been made out of stitching together individual strips of woven cloth that may not be initially related in pattern but come together to become a masterpiece. Damedame is a cloth made of a checkered design that speaks to notions of intelligence, strategy and ingenuity. By bringing these ideas together, another phrase in the (Akan) Twi language emerges: Ade’nnsãda! This phrase translates loosely as “night never falls!”.
The deliberate choice of Doha as the venue for the exhibition is apt. Doha is a vibrant space that is constantly opening up to international collaborators and the exhibition makes an offering that should keep audiences coming back tointeract with the many facets of a buzzing creative scene from lands where night never falls…
Participating Artists:
Christine Nyatho
Dorothy Akpene Amenuke
Fatric Bewong
Halimatu Iddrisu
Theresah Ankomah
Al Hassan Issah
Patrick Tagoe-Turkson
Gideon Hanyame
Agnes Waruguru
Lynette-Mupoti-Musukubili
DuduBloom More
Bernard Akoi-Jackson