"In 2015, when Mahama was in his late 20s and finishing up his fine arts Ph.D. in Ghana, he was selected to participate in one of the world's most important art festivals, the Venice Biennale. His installation there, "Out of Bounds," combined stitched-together burlap sacks made in Southeast Asia used to export Ghanaian cacao beans to the West with knotted ropes and metal tags, creating a giant patchwork of material that he draped over a long medieval dockyard passageway."
"The immersive corridor, which touched on labor, exploitation, colonial legacies and global trade, brought Mahama international acclaim, prestigious gallery representation and, over time, financial success that he is using to transform the artistic landscape in Ghana. His approach as an artist leading change has led him to be recognized as one of the most significant artists in the world. In early December, he took the No. 1 spot on the Power 100 list of magazine ArtReview,"
Ibrahim Mahama rose to international prominence after his 2015 Venice Biennale installation "Out of Bounds," which stitched burlap sacks from Southeast Asia that had carried Ghanaian cacao beans with knotted ropes and metal tags to create a vast patchwork draped through an Arsenale dockyard passageway. The immersive corridor addressed labor, exploitation, colonial legacies and global trade. The work secured prestigious gallery representation and financial success that Mahama is using to transform Ghana's artistic infrastructure. He attained No. 1 on ArtReview's Power 100, becoming the first African to top the list, and situates the achievement within a Global South movement shifting power away from the West.
Read at www.dw.com
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