AFRICOMICS - Eröffnung
Alte Feuerwache Ticketshop
Comics in and from Africa
Opening
Tuesday 12.9. - 19:00
Alte Feuerwache Köln
Ausstellungshalle
Opening with Odile Uwera (Comic-Künstlerin), Brian Humura (Comic-Künstler), Nando Nkrumah (Kurator) & Live-Musik from ADUNA
Cooperation: Goethe-Institut Bonn
The African comic scene is as diverse as the continent itself. The AFRICOMICS project initiated by the Goethe-Institut Accra 2020 enabled comic artists from sub-Saharan Africa to network internationally and develop new ideas and storyboards in local and regional workshops. More than 190 artists took part in the 2021 - 2022 workshops and 82 comics were developed.
A selection of these comics will now be shown for the first time in the form of an exhibition at the Africa Film Festival Cologne.
Odile Uwera from Rwanda and Brian Humura from Uganda have been invited to Cologne to open the exhibition and personally present their comics NAMELESS IN CAPE COAST and THE COG. Both artists use their comics to visually address political and socially relevant issues such as enslavement, colonialism and human trafficking.
In addition to the exhibition, workshops will address a wide range of socially relevant topics, encouraging discussion, participation and reflection.
Live music at the opening
ADUNA means world. Xelu Baye Fall (vocals and guitar) and Herby Lurol (flutes, percussion, vocals, keyboard) combine their World Fusion Senegal music with reggae and jazz elements. Xelu sings his own written lyrics. Herby accompanies the music with melodic, spherical and rhythmic sounds.
In cooperation with Goethe-Institut Bonn
Dienstag 12.9. - 19:00 Uhr Eröffnung
in Anwensenheit von Odile Uwera, Brian Humura & Nando Nkrumah
Guests
Illustrator and visual storyteller Odile Uwera (b. 1996) lives and works in Kigali, Rwanda. She likes to experiment with different media. One of her biggest dreams is to become a filmmaker. In March 2022, she published a colouring book for adults and children about Rwanda called "NKUNDA IWACU" (I love our homeland). When she is not devoting herself to her own projects, such as her recent solo exhibition "untitled - a journal of uncertain times", she works as a freelance illustrator. Currently, she is engaged in comics. Having written and illustrated two illustrated graphic novels since 2021, she is looking forward to further developing this medium in her career.
Artist and writer Brian Humura has been part of Uganda's digital art scene for 10 years. He has gained nationwide recognition for his comic books, such as GUARDIAN – ONE OF UGANDA'S HEROES, NDAHURA and TALES. His fascination with superheroes began at an early age, largely because of the desire to create characters and worlds with which Brian and his readers could identify - for which his comics are particularly loved. As co-founder of KAB Inc, an entertainment company specializing in the visual arts, he believes that his dream of bringing African stories to the world stage is about to come true: "Africa is becoming great".
Nando Nkrumah is an artist whose work transcends the boundaries of time, culture, and artistic media. Born in Kumasi, Ghana in 1979, Nando Nkrumah's artistic practice is deeply rooted in his Ghanaian-German heritage. As an artist living in the African diaspora, Nkrumah draws from a multi-faceted life and the diverse perspectives of his environment, which he weaves into expressive creations.
Nando Nkrumah's artistic expression includes painting and drawing, as well as digital works in which he explores the interplay of past and future and challenges normative as well as hegemonic social constructs. His creative process serves as a powerful means of liberation, aiming to break free from constraining paradigms and redefine social relationships. By fusing traditional and futuristic elements, Nkrumah initiates a profound artistic transformation that translates traditional symbolism into futuristic visual worlds.