Anna Kućma
In recent decades North Korean-made monuments have been unveiled in many African countries, honouring independence leaders and celebrating an African Renaissance. The South Korean photographer and filmmaker Che Onejoon has been documenting the monuments and the histories around them, their cultural significance and the relationships that they symbolize between two continents. The outcomes of his long-term exploration were recently published in a book titled International Friendship. The Gifts from... In recent decades North Korean-made monuments have been unveiled in many African countries, honouring independence leaders and celebrating an African...
Bart Luirink
The new South African director of the Prince Claus Fund wants to create a self-sustaining ecosystem of the arts. Coming from a musical family of 21 and growing up with his mother at his granny’s place in Mamelodi, Pretoria, Marcus Tebogo Desando was not encouraged to be a quiet child. “The quieter you are, the more they forget you’re there.” So, you have to fight for your own space, which is what he did. Enter the school choir, then the church choir. Desando would eventually become a professional... The new South African director of the Prince Claus Fund wants to create a self-sustaining ecosystem of the arts. Coming from a musical family of 21 and...
Eyerusaleam Kassahun, Steven W. Thomas
For most outsiders, modern Ethiopian cinema means Haile Gerima and Salem Mekuria. But others, in addition to these, made its rich cinema history. In December 2019, film connoisseurs in Ethiopia received a rare treat when the Addis Ababa Cinema Houses Administration Enterprise arranged a festival to showcase some of the classic Ethiopian movies made between 1964 and 1992. These films had been largely inaccessible to filmgoers, filmmakers, instructors, and students, for decades. The last time any of... For most outsiders, modern Ethiopian cinema means Haile Gerima and Salem Mekuria. But others, in addition to these, made its rich cinema history. In...
ZAM Reporter
Ketikoti, which in the Surinamese language Sranantongo means “the chain is broken”, is officially called the Day of Freedom (Dag der Vrijheden). It commemorates the abolition of slavery in Surinam and the Dutch Antilles in 1863. July 1st is celebrated as a national commemoration day in the Netherlands. If you are in or near Amsterdam and would like to join the Ketikoti celebrations, here are some of the activities that ZAM recommends: Returning the Gaze Sites of Memory: Based on a drawing of... Ketikoti, which in the Surinamese language Sranantongo means “the chain is broken”, is officially called the Day of Freedom (Dag der Vrijheden). It...
ZAM Reporter
Studio ZAM hosted Marcus Tebogo Desando, the newly appointed director of the Prince Claus Fund, on June 30th 2022. The programme was moderated by Augustina Austin aka Ms. Aba. You can watch the conversation again here : Studio ZAM hosted Marcus Tebogo Desando, the newly appointed director of the Prince Claus Fund, on June 30th 2022. The programme was moderated by...
ZAM Reporter
If you’re lucky enough to find yourself on the sunny streets of Amsterdam this summer, there are some treats in store! Two new exhibitions featuring work by African photographers await you, each exploring radically different visions of the world. Huis Marseille plays host to The Beauty of the World so Heavy, a group exhibition in which four photographers with very diverse practices explore the sharpness and softness of earthly existence. This show marks the European debut of South African... If you’re lucky enough to find yourself on the sunny streets of Amsterdam this summer, there are some treats in store! Two new exhibitions featuring work...
Charl Landvreugd
The South African artist and winner of the 2021 ABN AMRO Kunstprijs is actively participating in this process of re-shaping a world away from capitalist spaces where Afro-pessimism rules. In today’s climate, and with the recent research outcomes around this bank’s colonial past, Neo’s work is a timely response. A response in which his work provides an image of Blackness which is reflected in itself rather than in the gaze of whiteness. Let us therefore, in Neo’s words, thank God and the gods that... The South African artist and winner of the 2021 ABN AMRO Kunstprijs is actively participating in this process of re-shaping a world away from capitalist...
ZAM Reporter
Op een vroege ochtend in Lagos ziet Femke van Zeijl een waterreservoir rakelings langs haar raam naar beneden storten. Dit incident en vooral de nasleep ervan brengen direct aan het licht hoezeer het dagelijks leven in deze miljoenenstad verschilt van leven in de Nederlandse maatschappij. Terwijl van Zeijl nog zit te bedenken welke gemeentelijke dienst ze moet bellen, hebben haar buren al minstens twee oplossingen bedacht en zijn ze aan de uitvoering ervan begonnen. De doe-het-zelf maatschappij... Op een vroege ochtend in Lagos ziet Femke van Zeijl een waterreservoir rakelings langs haar raam naar beneden storten. Dit incident en vooral de nasleep...
ZAM Reporter
A South African arts administrator and artist has taken over the reins at the Dutch Prince Claus Fund. As a “driving force in the development of young South African artists and aspiring artistic entrepreneurs," the new director of the Prince Claus Fund is, in the words of chairman Ila Kasim, "the embodiment of the spirit" of her organisation. It is up to Desando to lead the fund into the future. Central to this is the development of individual artists in different phases of their professional... A South African arts administrator and artist has taken over the reins at the Dutch Prince Claus Fund. As a “driving force in the development of young...
Anna Kućma
This year marks my fourth time serving as a member of the panel judging the annual Contemporary African Photography (CAP) Prize. Every year it offers my fellow jurors and I a unique opportunity to engage with a dazzling array of photography from and about the continent, spanning all styles and disciplines. But the judging structure is designed in such a way - we submit our ratings privately and they are totalled up - that even the judges do not know the final winners until they are announced. This... This year marks my fourth time serving as a member of the panel judging the annual Contemporary African Photography (CAP) Prize. Every year it offers my...
ZAM Reporter
After a two-year hiatus, the Amsterdam Cinedans Festival returns with a very special edition. Opening on June 22, 2022, the state-of-the-art international dance film presents a wide range of productions, and on Saturday 25 June the works of black choreographers, companies and dancers will be celebrated at an event titled ‘Black Dance Matters’. The programme brings you reflection of diversity in dance and society and features relevant documentaries and a shorts programme, followed by a discussion... After a two-year hiatus, the Amsterdam Cinedans Festival returns with a very special edition. Opening on June 22, 2022, the state-of-the-art...
Anna Kućma
Two exhibitions, one in Cape Town and the other 8000 kilometres away in Amsterdam, showcase the works of South African artist Neo Matloga, winner of the 2021 ABN AMRO Art Award. Déjà Vu, Neo Matloga’s first solo exhibition in Cape Town, opened earlier this month at Stevenson Gallery. In this exhibition, Matloga moves away from the cinematic, interconnected narratives that characterised his previ-ous bodies of work. Instead, the artist’s new works are individual scenes that herald a new chapter of... Two exhibitions, one in Cape Town and the other 8000 kilometres away in Amsterdam, showcase the works of South African artist Neo Matloga, winner of the...
ZAM Reporter
This year's celebration of Africa Day brings you five days of music, talks, club nights, films and networking both online and in real life In a unique collaboration between Omek, Amsterdam’s home for the global bicultural community, and Africadelic, celebraters of all things Afrodisaporic, this event will centre around Africa Day, which marks the foundation of the Organisation of African Unity. Though Africa Day has been celebrated every year since May 25th 1963, its recognition varies... This year's celebration of Africa Day brings you five days of music, talks, club nights, films and networking both online and in real life In a unique...
Aimie Eliot
African photography is rarely exhibited in Japan. For the past ten years Kyotographie , the largest international photography festival in the archipelago, has been doing its best to reverse this underrepresentation and reveal the continent’s talents in Japan. For a month, until last weekend, Prince Gyasi’s pictures flew over the heads of shoppers in an old-school shopping arcade in the centre of Kyoto, the former imperial capital of Japan. The young Ghanaian artist took the pictures at his local... African photography is rarely exhibited in Japan. For the past ten years Kyotographie , the largest international photography festival in the...
ZAM Reporter
Colonial legacies, fundraising difficulties as well as a structural lack of interest from many African governments towards contemporary art and culture still complicate the march towards equal representation of countries in the Venice Biennale. These are the words of Anna Kućma, ZAM's new photo and web editor. In this magazine she guides you through the African share in what is probably the world's leading explosion of contemporary art. The good news: in the upcoming edition, opening on April 23,... Colonial legacies, fundraising difficulties as well as a structural lack of interest from many African governments towards contemporary art and culture...
Anna Kućma
The Venice Biennial, officially opening on April 23, is perhaps Europe’s most glamorous international forum for contemporary art. During the opening week of the exhibition there are more artists, curators, collectors, and art critics gathered in one place at one time than seem to exist anywhere else in the world. The biennale format has inherited many characteristics from its forebears, the World Fairs. The event is organised around a format of international competition, with national exhibitions... The Venice Biennial, officially opening on April 23, is perhaps Europe’s most glamorous international forum for contemporary art. During the opening week...
Tonderai Chiyindiko/New Frame
Started by Thami Mazibuko, the Zondi space is a library, classroom and community literacy centre, built to serve its residents across generations. When Thami Mazibuko moved back to Zondi, Soweto, in 2015 having lived in the Johannesburg central business district for a few years, he quickly realised that there were no bookshops in that part of the township – let alone any Black-owned ones. “People in the townships and previously disadvantaged communities do not have access to books. Books are a... Started by Thami Mazibuko, the Zondi space is a library, classroom and community literacy centre, built to serve its residents across generations. When...
Bart Luirink
The winner of FOAM’s 2022 Paul Huf Award recreates the past to imagine a better future. In her debut series Ke Lafa-Kaka: Her Story (2013), the family albums of Lebohang Kganye, winner of the 2022 Paul Huf Award, form the basis for a search for the history of her mother, who died in 2010. Lebohang was 20 when she died. In the family home, three years after her death, she still found the clothes her mother wore. Kganye recognized them from the family photos and put them on. It was 'therapeutic,' she... The winner of FOAM’s 2022 Paul Huf Award recreates the past to imagine a better future. In her debut series Ke Lafa-Kaka: Her Story (2013), the family...
ZAM Reporter
your support enables African changemakers and creatives to work with even greater vigor to build fair and free societies. To agitate against abuse of power and theft. To shape a just future. In the fifteen years of our existence, ZAM has developed a unique solidarity model that connects internationally renowned artists and African changemakers and creatives. The artists donate work that ZAM offers to its subscribers, followers and sympathizers. The proceeds from sales enable us to move up with our... your support enables African changemakers and creatives to work with even greater vigor to build fair and free societies. To agitate against abuse of...
ZAM Reporter
On Friday 28 January, 2022, ZAM editor-in-chief Bart Luirink will be in conversation with Fem Comic Artist and activist Maia Matches about her new book-in-the-making on two South African artists: Thami Mnyele and her grandfather Bill Hart. They will discuss subjects around artists in resistance during Apartheid. Maia will also share some of her personal ideals in creating the new work. Out of the wilderness of East York Toronto comes Maia Matches! Her immigrant parents didn't bat an eyelid when... On Friday 28 January, 2022, ZAM editor-in-chief Bart Luirink will be in conversation with Fem Comic Artist and activist Maia Matches about her new...
ZAM Reporter
On Sunday 6 February, the third edition of the ZAM Nelson Mandela Lecture took place at the International Theatre Amsterdam. The lecture, which is part of our #ImagineMandela-Live! programme, was delivered by acclaimed Kenyan author and opinion maker Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor: The Future is a Story we Tell Ourselves. Notes for a Prelude . While the 2020 lecture by Nigerian writer Elnathan John happened only days before the Netherlands went into lockdown, the latest edition came to life when the country... On Sunday 6 February, the third edition of the ZAM Nelson Mandela Lecture took place at the International Theatre Amsterdam. The lecture, which is part...