In “litafrika: Artistic Encounters” opening on 16 June 2023 at Strauhof Zurich, curator Zukiswa Wanner stages eight scenes from contemporary African literature through encounters with music, performance and visual art. Across national and linguistic borders, the exhibition sheds light on a pan-African generation of writers who are increasingly networked and internationally active.

This is the second edition in the “litafrika” exhibition trilogy (2022-2024) dedicated to the literatures of the African continent by Swiss partners Litar Foundation and Strauhof Zurich together with South African/Kenyan writer, editor, and publisher Zukiswa Wanner. The project aims to be an intercontinental platform for a long-term dialogue with African and European authors, translators and publishers.

In “Artistic Encounters”, Zukiswa responds to the first part of the exhibition series with eight prose texts by contemporary authors. As a continuation of “Poetries of a Continent” (2022), she shifts the emphasis from postcolonial poetry to contemporary novels to foreground the diverse stories of a younger generation of writers and artists.

For “Artistic Encounters”, artistic partnerships have been created that transfer literature into videos and artworks and at the same time deepen the dialogue between language regions through text translations. The exhibition is designed to be shown on the African continent as well.

Zukiswa’s selection includes both well-known names and those she hopes people will be thrilled to discover through the exhibition. “The exhibition comprises some of the most gifted contemporary authors, musicians, actors and visual artists of my generation from English, French and Portuguese-speaking Africa,” she explains. “The countries represented in this exhibition make only 25% of my Africa’s nations but as a pan-Africanist, I choose to disregard the borders and prefer to focus on how our stories, sounds, expressions and art that you will see here resonate across the world’s second largest continent.”

ARTISTIC ENCOUNTERS

Ishmael Beah (Sierra Leone): Radiance of Tomorrow (2014)
x          Shafik Manzi (Rwanda): visual artist

Virgília Ferrão (Mozambique): Os Nossos Feitiços (2022)
x          Jussara Camblé (São Tomé and Príncipe): actress

Abubakar Adam Ibrahim (Nigeria): Season of Crimson Blossoms (2015)
x          Maïmouna Jallow (Gambia): actress

Angela Makholwa (South Africa): Critical But, Stable (2020)
x          Michael Soi (Kenya): visual artist

Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi (Uganda): The First Woman (2020)
x          Ntombephi Ntobela (South Africa): visual artist

Yara Nakahanda Monteiro (Angola): Essa Dama Bate Bue (2018)
x          Zubz the Last Letter (Zambia): musician

Fiston Mwanza Mujila (DR Congo): Tram 83 (2014)
x          Prudence Katomeni (Zimbabwe): musician

Ondjaki (Angola): Os Transparentes (2012)
x          Sereetsi & The Natives (Botswana): musician