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After over fifty editions delving into the global Black diaspora, this marks a final column. The journey was profoundly fulfilling, and immense gratitude offered to all the dedicated followers.

Exploring the Cultural Week

Visiting the showcases, artworks and shows of the festival, it becomes clear how superior art sustains and builds a nation's heritage and character. The highlight was without doubt Clottey's exquisite [Dis]Appearing Rituals: An Open Lab of Now for Tomorrow, which showcased his innovative afrogallonism in full view: a approach that reimagines yellow jerrycans into mesmerizing works of art, tapestries of yellow, brass and gold. The display was conceived as a tribute to the strength of Jamestown, a historical area of Accra.

The community – mainly inhabited by the Ga community, a seafaring people – is additionally where many formerly enslaved people returned from Brazil and established themselves in the 19th century. Known as the Tabom community, they introduced Portuguese language and traditions.

Throughout Jamestown, you can see a blend of architectural styles. You'll find a historic building, featuring its unique Portuguese brickwork and door arches. Another landmark is the prominent lighthouse of Jamestown, constructed in the 1800s and eventually sporting its signature red-and-white-striped facade.

A Culture of Mourning

Furthermore notable about Jamestown is the ever-present presence of memorial notices. Everywhere you turn, whether plastered over walls or on sizable hoardings, there are announcements and expressions of mourning. In Jamestown, mirroring customs in Ghana, funerals are major social gatherings.

In the artist's breathtaking installation, every aspect of the visual and auditory essence of Jamestown are evoked – particularly in the enveloping shoreline work. In this space, visitors are calmed by the audio of crashing waves with sand at your feet, while shelters, nets and depictions of canoes celebrate its spirited, generational fishing community. Yet experiencing this venue, one cannot help but think of the piles of textile waste that mar the aesthetics and tranquillity of the region.

Beyond the Centrepiece

Accra Cultural Week also features much more. Housed in an raw space at the local university, artist Reginald Sylvester II presented On the Other Side of Languish, an incredibly moving, minimalist show that featured sculptures and artworks created in collaboration with metalworkers.

Also featured was the Yaa Asantewaa Art prize for female Ghanaian artists. It featured the inaugural exhibition of a recent laureate, whose work utilizes personal family archives to create a visual impression of life in post-independence Ghana. The event also honored a latest winner, whose multidisciplinary work is intensely concerned with the craft techniques of women in the Volta region.

An Enduring Legacy

Although the overseas community has increasingly been pulled back to the region during the colder season, an increasing number are considering journeying earlier in the year to immerse themselves in the area's festival period. From Accra Cultural Week and regional art fairs, what you’ll find are art scenes that are not simply nascent or “upcoming” but have established an entire landscape that is permanent.

Finally, the journey offers a vision of Accra that feels like a statement for ecological stewardship and the keeping alive of culture. It is a powerful homage to perseverance in all its manifestations.