Away from Africa

  Paris Noir showcases many of the Black artists who came to live in Paris, study in Paris, work in Paris, from all over the world. Paris was especially a refuge for Black American artists who in the 1950s fled Jim Crow and the lack of freedom in the United States to live a free(-er) life in France. The show includes visual art: paintings, collages, and sculptures, as well as film clips, and texts describing the various periods in time, between the 1950s and 2000. As per the Centre Pompidou website : From the creation of the  Présence Africaine  review to that of  Revue noire , “Black Paris” retraces the presence and influence of Black artists in France from the 1950s to 2000. The exhibition celebrates 150 artists coming from Africa, the Americas and the Caribbean, whose works have often never been displayed in France before. Gerard Sekoto, South Africa: Self-Portrait, 1947 Artists shown hail from Martinique, Guadeloupe, the former French African colonies: Senegal, C...

Two tables, one design, by Lilikpó The Viaduc des Arts in the twelfth arrondissement in Paris now houses cafés and chic shops, including the Lilikpó workshop managed by Sika Viagbo. Walking by, the first thing you notice is the originality and the beauty of the creations through the store window. It's a workshop visible from the street: the designer, Sika Viagbo, works on her creations in front of passersby eyes. Before starting her own company, she worked with Pierre Mesguich (Paris), an internationally known mosaic designer, who has worked all over the world. Sika also interned separately in Tokyo and in China. The company's name means "cloud" in Ewé, one of the languages spoken in Togo, where her parents immigrated from. Her own design influences are multicultural, inspired by her travels and experience. How did Sika get started in this profession? She grew up in Vitry sur Seine, a Paris suburb. As a music major at the University of St. Denis P...

The Musée Dapper in Paris, located in the Embassy neighborhood in the 16th arrondissement, at 35 rue Paul Valery, is a wonderful hidden gem, mainly known to specialists of art from Africa and its diaspora, including the Caribbean. The difference between the Musée Dapper and many other French museums is that the Musée Dapper is a nonprofit organization, whereas many French museums are run by the French government. In the United States, it is the opposite: most museums are nonprofits/public-private partnerships, including the Smithsonian Institution , which I thought was a Federal institution. Samir Bitar, Director of the Office of Visitor Services , provided explanations on this subject. (however, Smithsonian museums are housed in GSA buildings .) The museum opened in 1986, after the Olfert Dapper Foundation was created in 1983 in Amsterdam by Michel Leveau (1930-2012). Why Olfert Dapper? He had written a “Description of Africa” in 1668, an encyclopedia-style book, where...

Paris boasts a modern museum whose core permanent exhibitions are of traditional art in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas. The Musée du Quai Branly , located close to the Eiffel Tower, is a modern and "green" structure opened to the public in 2006. Quai Branly Museum street view La Rivière Entering the museum is in itself an adventure--first through outdoor winding paths, in the garden, and then an interior winding path, in itself a work of art called the "River" showing words projected in the ground, moving like water. It's quite a trip to reach the top, where the entrance to the permanent exhibits is, as well as to the current exhibition, "The Art of Hair." Below are a few photos of the Africa section. As usual in all African traditional art exhibits, there are many pieces from the Grassland Bamiléké region's prolific artists. However, to my great surprise, there was one piece, not just from Douala, but specifically from Deido,...