all photos courtesy of the North Carolina Museum of Art, except where otherwise noted
An ephemeral gesture: What better or more poetic way to open a permanent installation of African art? The conceptual complexity of African art cries out for subtle contradictions that engage the public in a dialogue, a reflection upon what has been erased and what remains.
In June 2017, Washington, DC-based, Nigerian-born artist Victor Ekpuk will install a 30 × 18 foot site-specific wall drawing in the North Carolina Museum of Art's new African art gallery. The installation will be documented during its creation and a year later when it is wiped off with a sponge and water. No lasting physical object will remain; rather a series of relationships and connections will begin. Ekpuk's work, positioned at a right angle to the 18 × 25 foot El Anatsui work Lines that Link Humanity, will bring together...