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In the wake of more than 50 editions exploring the worldwide Black diaspora, this marks a last piece. The journey was incredibly rewarding, with great gratitude offered to all the attentive audience.

A Look Inside Accra Cultural Week

Visiting the displays, installations and performances of this event, it becomes clear how the finest art nourishes and builds a nation's history and character. The centrepiece was without doubt Clottey's stunning a profound exploration of ritual and time, which displayed his pioneering afrogallonism on full display: a approach that reimagines yellow jerrycans into captivating art pieces, mosaics of golden hues. The display was designed as a testament to the endurance of this area, a venerable area of Accra.

This area – predominantly populated by the Ga community, a community of fishermen – is furthermore where many freed slaves came back from Brazil and established themselves in the 1830s. Referred to as the Tabom community, they carried with them Brazilian tongue and culture.

All across Jamestown, one observes a blend of architectural styles. Standing is Fort Vicentia, with its distinct Portuguese brickwork and door arches. Another landmark is the prominent beacon, constructed in the 1800s and subsequently featuring its signature red-and-white-striped exterior.

Customs of Remembrance

Also notable about Jamestown is the pervasive presence of obituary announcements. On every corner, whether affixed to buildings or on larger hoardings, there are funeral details and phrases of farewell. In Jamestown, mirroring customs in Ghana, funerals are significant social gatherings.

In the artist's impressive show, all of the sensory and spiritual landscape of Jamestown are evoked – notably in the enveloping shoreline work. Here, visitors are calmed by the recording of ocean surf with beach material underfoot, while beach huts, draped nets and images of canoes celebrate its spirited, long-standing maritime community. However standing in this gallery, one cannot help but think of the piles of discarded clothing that mar the beauty and serenity of the area.

In Addition to the Centrepiece

Accra Cultural Week also features a great deal more. Housed in an unfinished structure at the local university, creator Sylvester exhibited On the Other Side of Languish, an emotionally powerful, stripped-back exhibition that included sculptures and artworks created in concert with metalworkers.

And then there is the competition for female artists for female Ghanaian artists. It featured the inaugural exhibition of a recent recipient, whose work draws on historical documents to create a visual impression of life in Ghana after independence. The event also honored a new winner, whose multidisciplinary work is intensely focused on the weaving practices of women in the Volta region.

A Lasting Presence

Although the overseas community has more and more been pulled home to Ghana during the colder season, a growing cohort are considering travelling earlier in the year to experience the region’s cultural season. From Accra Cultural Week and other major events, what is evident are cultural ecosystems that are not simply new or “rising” but have built up an whole landscape that is here to stay.

In the end, the experience leaves one with a perception of Accra that resembles a manifesto for environmental protection and the safeguarding of culture. It is a compelling testament to resilience in all its forms.