Senegal

Visual arts in africa

Plagued by a litany of problems and obstacles

By John Owoo
(on Goree Island)

_{In spite of the emergence of a prolific group of African artists who have made bold appearances in international art festivals, the situation of the visual artists and the sector itself appears to be in need of support and attention. Dejectedly, notwithstanding the appearance of African modernists over two decades ago, venues for shows, facilities for art education, exhibition, exchange programmes as well as a viable local market for art are woefully deficient. Indeed, a workshop on the visual arts that forms part of the ongoing seminar on Revitalising African Cultural Assets on the Senegalese Island of Goree unveiled a litany of problems and obstacles that have persistently militated against the development of the visual arts in Africa.

With a very low number of participants attending the visual arts workshop, which in itself is an indication of the marginalization of the sector, participants led by the Gambian artist Danda Jaroljimek and moderated by Kenyan painter Jimmy Ogonga enumerated a number of issues that must be tackled in the sector. These include lack of. local, regional and international residency programmes, government and corporate support, incentives for public art projects, trained administrators and curators, visual art schools and the apparent cost of artworks that seem to be beyond the means of average Africans.}

_{^{Others are the issue of ignorance, lack of interest by the media, difficulty in securing donor funds, lack of philanthropic attitudes, intellectual backgrounds to artworks, insufficient exhibition space and the absence of experiments and fresh ideas by most African artists. In his contribution, the Secretary General of the Dakar Biennial (Dak Art) Ousseynou Wade congratulated the Kuona Trust in Kenya for its initiatives and outreach projects, which he said will go a along way in informing and educating the general public. He called for residencies for artists in other African countries as a way of exposing them to different environments and ideas. He said capacity building is crucial if there is going to be a headway adding that there is an important need for art education in schools and the development of a critical discourse on art in the media and elsewhere. He appealed to African governments to institute tax breaks for companies who support the arts as an incentive for more corporate involvement.

The Coordinator of Group 30 Afrique in Senegal, Oumar Sall said it is time for the voice of African artists to be heard. This he stressed requires a united front. He stated that artists must also be present during investment meetings since it will go a long way in ensuring that investors are better informed about the role of art in the development process. Panelists generally agreed on a number of steps to help reverse the situation of African art. These include effective networking, partnerships with other organisations, training of artists and art administrators, education of public and corporate bodies, exchange projects across the entire continent, advocacy for internal and external funding and more
public art projects to ensure visibility.

The three-day conference is aimed at stressing the relevance and contribution of the cultural sector to human development while attempting to find solutions to the vast number of problems that has inhibited the sustenance, growth and development of the Arts in Africa. Dubbed “The Arterial”, it is also meant to provide a forum for free dialogue among stakeholders from the African cultural sector together with the most committed agencies that provide funding and support to the functioning and the free development of the arts and culture in Africa.

Others are to reflect on the current state of the Visual Arts, Film Sector, Book Industry and the Performing Arts in Africa, while facilitating collaboration among organisations, experts and donor agencies including networking, resource development, information sharing and funding arrangements that would continue to strengthen the cultural sector in Africa.

The conference, which is being sponsored by Hivos (The Netherlands), Stromme Foundation (Norway), Danish Centre for Cultural Development, International Network for Cultural Diversity (Denmark) and the Goree Institute (Senegal), has attracted participants from eighteen African and European countries thereby strengthening the diversity of the Goree Island.}}