“Mandela was not the only head of state taken in by Koagne. Le king kept snapshots of himself with many a man of power, among them Mobutu Sese Seko and Denis Sassou Nguesso […] He took Mobutu for 15 million dollars. Blaise Compaoré of Burkina Faso lost 40 million to him. Sassou, Etienne Eyadéma of Togo, several high officials of Gabon, Tanzania and Kenya, a member of the Spanish government and an ex-operative of the Israeli Mossad were bamboozled as well.” – Dominique Malaquais (Blood Money: A Douala Chronicle).
Bantu Serenade by Ntone Edjabe (featuring Nah-ee-lah) (read excerpt)
Santu Mofokeng: Trajectory of a street photographer (part1) (read excerpt)
Binyavanga Wainaina: Hell In Bed With Mrs Peprah (read excerpt)
Dominique Malaquais: Lindela (the winnie suite) (read excerpt)
Boubacar Boris Diop: Myriem (read excerpt)
Cover:
Neo Muyanga
ASAI (Africa South Art Initiative)
Africa South Art Initiative’s research focuses on artists working on the African continent, particularly those challenging or commenting on power relations, unsettling dominant perceptions and frameworks, and/or who have a history of being under-valued by the art world and society at large. Research also focuses on community arts organisations with their roots in the struggle against apartheid. In addition, ASAI provides a platform for publishing research on a wide-range of relevant issues.
ASAI produces new and necessary resources on art and artists in Africa, and makes these resources accessible, mostly online. Resources serve a wide range of constituents, from students in schools to professionals and specialist practitioners.
ASAI’s emphasis on research and resources is rooted in activism, in conceiving of art as both a force for social change, as well as a site of struggle in its own right. Through critiques, discussions and debates, workshops and exhibitions, publications and social media, ASAI creates dynamic platforms that not only produce new resources, but also aim to generate new ways of seeing and doing.
