"Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination," a significant exhibition at New York's Museum of Modern Art, delves into the powerful connection between portrait photography and the formation of pan-African solidarity and self-perception. This groundbreaking show features an eclectic mix of iconic photographs from the 1960s, alongside works from the African diaspora and contemporary artists such as Seydou Keïta, Malick Sidibé, Sanlé Sory, Samuel Fosso, Silvia Rosi, and Njideka Akunyili Crosby. Its curatorial approach intentionally sidesteps a traditional chronological arrangement, instead fostering a dynamic and interpretive exploration of photographic histories within Africa and its diaspora.
The exhibition's core concept and title draw inspiration from V.Y. Mudimbe's influential 1994 book, "The Idea of Africa." Oluremi C Onabanjo, the MoMA curator, highlights how Mudimbe meticulously dissected established Western perspectives on the African continent. This framework allows the exhibition to encourage a nuanced understanding of how images and concepts have traveled and evolved across different times and places. Onabanjo emphasizes the inherently political nature of documenting photographic histories in Africa, illustrating how photography transcended mere individual identity to reflect and shape a collective political consciousness, particularly during the wave of African independence in the 1950s and 60s and the American Civil Rights Movement.
Artists like Jean Depara, who captured the vibrant nightlife of Kinshasa in 1954, and Sanlé Sory, who documented newly independent Burkina Faso, exemplify how image-makers articulated a sense of pan-African possibility. Seydou Keïta's early works from Bamako are also presented as sublime portrayals of a citizenry in the midst of transformation. The exhibition further expands this narrative with lesser-known images from Senegal by Oumar Ka, which explore rural landscapes, and J.D. 'Okhai Ojeikere's chronicles of Nigerian culture. Contemporary artists, including Fosso and Rosi, continue this rich tradition, with Fosso's "African Spirits" series ingeniously reinterpreting Black historical figures through self-portraits, thus demonstrating how photography remains a fluid and potent medium for expressing diverse theoretical perspectives, subjective positions, and critical interpretations across various historical contexts.
Photography, through its capacity to capture and convey diverse experiences, serves as a powerful instrument for shaping and reflecting collective identity and aspirations. This exhibition underscores the enduring impact of visual narratives in fostering a sense of shared heritage and future, encouraging us to recognize the profound influence art has in defining cultural and political landscapes.