ART X Lagos Celebrates its Eighth Edition By Adding Film to the Mix. The renowned Ousemane Sembène is honored at the opening ceremony of the ART X Lagos art event.
Now that Lagos Fashion Week has concluded, it’s time for the art world to take center stage. Starting today, the Federal Palace Hotel grounds on Victoria Island will be transformed into ART X Lagos. A few noteworthy modifications have been made to this year’s event, including a film area.
A program of artist films inspired by the visionary Senegalese filmmaker Ousmane Sembène will be screened at ART X Cinema. These movies will discuss Sembène’s conviction that movies can change people and his efforts to subvert stereotypes and rewrite stories. A collection of video essays explores the inventive ways in which artists subvert and reimagine narratives by showcasing diverse viewpoints.
ART X Cinema will feature well-known personalities from the African continent and its diaspora, including Meriem Bennani, Jihan El-Tahri, Binelde Hyrcan, Goddy Leye, Betehlem Makonnen, Zen Marie, Qudus Onikeku, Fatimah Tuggar, and Ezra Wube. This specialized section is a noteworthy addition to the festival, demonstrating its dedication to promoting diversity and originality in the film industry.
The first screening program, which Missla Libsekal is curating, will feature many movies and documentaries. The organizers claim that these pieces, which range from Fatimah Tuggar’s Fusion Cuisine, which questions narratives related to gender, race, and technology, to John Akomfrah and Lina Gopaul’s Handsworth Songs, which explore black history and center on the 1985 riots in Handsworth and London, represent the intersection of art, culture, and storytelling and are meant to spark thought and inspire conversations on contemporary issues. The films that have been chosen respond to and navigate socio-political contexts within the Nigerian, pan-African, and diasporan histories by providing complex portraits of actual and imaginary locations and people.
This year, ART X Lagos is taking place against heightened problems in Nigeria and Africa. Because of this, the fair had to reduce the number of participating galleries from 31 last year to 10 this year.
These galleries include Gallery 1957 (Ghana), Afriart Gallery (Uganda), Galerie MAM (Cameroon), and Nike Art Gallery (Nigeria). However, as evident from its yearly theme of “Dialogue,” it aspires to uphold its commitment to using art to influence society and to solidify its status as a center for social interaction.
