Africa Pop at the Musée International d'Art Naïf Anatole Jakovsky

Nice, in southern France, is not a hotbed of African culture. So it was a surprise to see a poster for the exhibition Africa Pop, showcasing African textiles in an original way, at a museum I had never heard of, the Musée International d'Art Naïf Anatole Jakovsky. 

The museum in itself was a nice surprise. Anatole Jakovsky was an art critic, collector, and writer, of Moldovan origin, who was very interested in 20th Century "naive" art, art from self-taught artists. He donated his extensive collection to the city of Nice. The museum was opened in 1982, in the historical Château Sainte-Hélène, which used to belong to the perfumer François Coty.

The ground floor houses the permanent collection, that includes well-known artists such as the postman Rousseau and Grandma Moses. Africa Pop (running through October 18, 2026) is on the upper floor. 

There were many wall hangings made of superimposed African cotton fabrics ("pagne" in French), each wall hanging combining fabrics with a similar motif. I had never seen the fabrics with space ship motifs... neither known that there had been a 2025 movie about African spacefarers, Le Grand Déplacement, about "an African space mission to find a habitable planet in case Earth becomes uninhabitable and Africans are left behind" (IMDB). Not a ridiculous idea: with some of our current politicians and their hangers-on, Africans could really be left behind!

In a room with displays of adornments from all over the continent, a silent movie (Stylé-e-s) played, portraying a group of people modeling both traditional and contemporary garb and fabrics from Africa. There are so many beautiful styles! It took me back to the days when I lived in Cameroon, and we would be excited to have a fashion show by a designer from another African country, or find something new in a local shop. Alphadi came once and held a show; I regret giving my beautiful linen suit away to a younger cousin, as it had become too snug on me.

There were a few more disparate items: music listened to in Africa (not just African music); political statements, old phone cards (from before smartphones existed)...

Separately from the rest of the exhibition, there is an "apartment," possibly similar to one a young urban African might live in nowadays, with some whimsical decor such as a curtain made of discarded Nespresso cartridges; and a mosquito net, as so many countries have mosquitoes, and malaria is a big public health issue.

The show was curated by Anne Grosfilley, an anthropologist, author of the beautiful book African Print Wax Textiles (2018), originally published in French under the title Wax & co. (2017); and Claude Boli , historian and sociologist.

What is a "clean war"?

Music

Ottomans made of large reused cans