The Africa Department of the Applied Research Center in Contemporary Cultures at IESA arts&culture contributes to the dissemination of African cultures within the school. Exhibition, training, themed day: Africa is at the heart of this start of the year!
With the exhibition “Traversées Photographiques Africaines” (African Photographic Crossings) or the celebration of the first World African Culture Day, IESA arts&culture placed the start of 2018 under the sign of Africa. Hafida Jemni Di Folco, head of the department at IESA arts&culture, explains this choice.
First of all because of the date of January 24. It is the anniversary of the signing of the Charter for African Cultural Renaissance on January 24, 2006 by the heads of state and government of the African Union. This is the date that was rightly chosen by
John Ayité Dossavi, president of the Mobilization & Organization Committee of the World Day of African Culture and founder of the RPAEC, to celebrate African cultures every year.
Why is it important for IESA arts&culture to take part in this JMCA?
We are taking part in this day because it fits perfectly with our department’s mission! We want to make African cultures more visible. Our department’s purpose is to familiarize our students with all African cultures: performing arts, performances, exhibitions, etc. By taking part in quality events, our students immerse themselves in African culture, which allows them to better understand it. With this knowledge passed on, they will be able to defend it knowledgeably and without preconceptions.
What is the program for this day?
The program set up for the World Day of African Culture offers talks around African culture with Alain Bidjeck and Hilaire Penda, both founders of the Mois des Cultures d’Afrique, as well as a master class on Phantom Africa given by the great photographer and specialist in the history of African photography, Françoise Huguier. And because culture is also about enjoying time together, the evening will close with a concert of Senegalese-inspired music by the Groupe Magou Samb.
You are also organizing a round table around the exhibition Traversées photographiques africaines.
Yes, this day takes its place within an exhibition presented at the IESA gallery until January 31 that shows the diversity of African photography through the work of six African artists! For the JMCA, we therefore chose to offer a round table that honors these artists. You will hear Nyaba Léon Ouédraogo, King Massasy, Martial Verdier, Nkruma Lawson Daku, and Saidou Dicko talk about their works with the exhibition’s curators, Olivier Sultan, director of Galerie Art-z, and myself. As you can see, we chose to focus on photography by inviting talented artists and specialists who wish to share their knowledge. Among the exhibited works, we can also note several photographs by Malick Sidibé, whose remarkable career is being celebrated by the Fondation Cartier with a major retrospective until February 25.
But does your department’s mission stop at producing events and exhibitions?
No, of course, these events are only one application of our research work. We carry out work in partnership with many institutions and artists in France but also on the continent. The opening this year of an arts&culture specialization at the ISM in Dakar within the Madiba Institute is a concrete example, with the creation of programs dedicated to students and professionals. Other programs should soon follow, notably through a partnership with the institution created by the great Barthelemy Toguo at Bandjoun Station (Cameroon). But I am also working with IESA’s 1st-year Masters students in Paris on a magnificent research and exhibition project with the artist Lamyne M. Not to mention the courses and workshops we organize within IESA’s programs, all our ongoing projects, or all those carried by the students we support!