Abidjan Art Week Transforms City into West Africa's Cultural Epicentre
On a recent weekday evening, the doors of more than a dozen galleries and museums across Abidjan remained open until midnight, several hours later than usual, as art enthusiasts embarked on a bus tour throughout the city. This was the Night of the Galleries, a special event designed to allow people to drop in after work and fully experience Abidjan Art Week.
Expanding Reach and Accessibility
Since its inception, Abidjan Art Week has significantly diversified its locations to include various parts of the city. Key venues now encompass La Rotonde des Arts centre for contemporary arts in the high-rise administrative district of Plateau and the Adama Toungara Museum of Contemporary Cultures (MuCAT) in the working-class neighbourhood of Abobo.
"It is about creating opportunities to encounter art beyond specific occasions, and fostering the idea of visiting not only to buy but to immerse oneself in the artist's world," explained Marie-Hélène Banimbadio Tusiama, a spokesperson for the art week.
Staking a Claim in the Regional Art Scene
Following two civil wars that impacted Côte d'Ivoire in the 2000s and 2010s, francophone West Africa's economic capital has been actively positioning itself at the centre of the contemporary West African art scene. This move places it alongside Dakar, the region's traditional reference point for visual arts.
In Abidjan, a city home to many immigrants from within and beyond Africa, a growing contingent of local art collectors is emerging. Since 2022, MuCAT has hosted the Africa Foto Fair, and the Marché des Arts du Spectacle d'Abidjan – Abidjan's counterpart to the Dakar Biennale – will hold its 14th edition later this month.
Embracing Street Art and Inclusivity
A nationwide graffiti festival was established two years ago, marking a symbolic shift in a country where graffiti art was previously associated with vandalism and artists faced potential criminal prosecution. Today, vibrant murals adorn the exterior walls of La Pyramide building and several upscale hotels in the Plateau district.
Organisers of the art week express hope for the sustained growth of the local art scene, aiming to scale it to new heights "independently of external approval." In this year's edition, artists from Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Mali were among those showcasing work across the city, with the number of participating galleries more than doubling.
Founder's Vision for a Vibrant Arts Community
Yacouba Konaté, the event's founder and director of La Rotonde des Arts, emphasises a deliberate focus on inclusivity to engage as many members of the public as possible. This approach challenges the perception that enjoying art is an exclusively elite activity.
"We want this event to become increasingly visible and accessible to a broad public," he stated. "One of the things we're trying to do is really communicate, to tell people that Abidjan is a cultural city and that there is a visual arts scene in Côte d'Ivoire and this scene is alive."
Honouring Pioneers and Showcasing Diverse Art
This year, the week commenced with a tribute to Simone Guirandou-N'Diaye, one of the earliest art historians in Côte d'Ivoire and a pioneer of the gallery spaces that provided the scene with its first institutional foundations. She and her daughter Gazelle currently operate Galerie LouiSimone Guirandou, one of this year's participating venues.
At MuCAT, the exhibition Murmures d'Archives presented a different register of quieter, more archival art. The week concluded there with an artists' workshop and a DJ set.
In the upmarket area of Cocody, a solo exhibition by New York-based artist Ouattara Watts at Galerie Cécile Fakhoury, one of the city's most prominent spaces, facilitated dialogue between the Ivorian diaspora and the local scene. The artist described his work as inspired by a universal view of art.
"My vision is not tied to any particular country or continent; it transcends borders and everything that can be found on a map," said Watts, who relocated to New York in 1988 on the advice of his friend Jean-Michel Basquiat. "Whilst I use recognisable elements to make myself better understood, this is a project that goes far beyond that. It is the cosmos that I paint."
Origins and Future Prospects
The after-hours special showcase, known as the Night of the Galleries, was initially trialled in January 2024 alongside the Africa Cup of Nations football tournament, which was hosted and won by Côte d'Ivoire. This tradition continued during the art week's third edition, which ran from last Tuesday to Sunday.
With its expanded reach, increased participation, and commitment to accessibility, Abidjan Art Week is solidifying the city's reputation as a burgeoning cultural hub in West Africa, attracting both local and international attention to its dynamic and evolving arts scene.
