Echo of our ancestors
Echo of our ancestors
Option Dzikamai Nyahunzvi (Zimbabwe), Alida Ymele (Cameroon), Maarten Dekker (the Netherlands), Joel Mpah Dooh (Cameroon)
Ancestral traditions are a source of inspiration that have taken shape throughout history in objects, stories, visual languages, and events. In Africa, traditions, the role of ancestors, and spirituality occupy a far more prominent place in daily life than in Europe, where traditions have receded into the background; here, visual language stems in part from our artistic forebears.
This exhibition brings together four artists inspired by their (artistic) ancestors.
Option Dzikamai Nyahunzvi traces ancestral lineages, the spiritual essence of his culture heard in the whispers of the ancestors—a language breathing community, connection, and the cyclical nature of life.
In the new works created for this exhibition, Alida Ymele literally depicts symbols and objects referencing ancestral traditions of the Bamiléké culture in Western Cameroon, from which she descends.
Maarten Dekker grounds his work in artistic predecessors such as Rietveld and Mondriaan. Repetition functions as an essential strategy to bypass the rational and forge a more spiritual connection beyond the material.
Joel Mpah Dooh also references artistic ancestors—the anonymous African sculptors. They play a key role in his drawings alongside his interpretation of contemporary daily life in the aftermath of decolonisation.
Option Dzikamai Nyahunzvi (Zimbabwe), Alida Ymele (Cameroon), Maarten Dekker (the Netherlands), Joel Mpah Dooh (Cameroon)
Ancestral traditions are a source of inspiration that have taken shape throughout history in objects, stories, visual languages, and events. In Africa, traditions, the role of ancestors, and spirituality occupy a far more prominent place in daily life than in Europe, where traditions have receded into the background; here, visual language stems in part from our artistic forebears.
This exhibition brings together four artists inspired by their (artistic) ancestors.
Option Dzikamai Nyahunzvi traces ancestral lineages, the spiritual essence of his culture heard in the whispers of the ancestors—a language breathing community, connection, and the cyclical nature of life.
In the new works created for this exhibition, Alida Ymele literally depicts symbols and objects referencing ancestral traditions of the Bamiléké culture in Western Cameroon, from which she descends.
Maarten Dekker grounds his work in artistic predecessors such as Rietveld and Mondriaan. Repetition functions as an essential strategy to bypass the rational and forge a more spiritual connection beyond the material.
Joel Mpah Dooh also references artistic ancestors—the anonymous African sculptors. They play a key role in his drawings alongside his interpretation of contemporary daily life in the aftermath of decolonisation.
Translated automatically ·