Black Ancient Futures

(Paperback)

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Artists from the vast African diaspora challenging the dominant aesthetic representations of Africa

The visual and textual proposals presented in this book challenge the dominant aesthetic representations of Africa through languages that propose and reimagine a past, a present and a future for the black artistic experience in a transcontinental reality. These are broad proposals that do not aim to illustrate a current or movement, but embrace the creation of fantasies, science-fiction narratives, and discourses where criticism, satire and irony are evident.

This book brings together a significant group of voices from the vast African diaspora that offers dense visual and philosophical thought rich in references to African history, mysticism, mythology, ecology and fictions. Through visual and textual proposals, these voices challenge the dominant aesthetic representations of Africa through languages that propose and reimagine a past, a present and a future for the black artistic experience in a transcontinental reality.

Author Bio

Camila Maissune is an independent curator and holds a BA in Social Sciences, specialising in Visual Anthropology, and an MA and PhD in Arts and Visual Culture. She is the co-founder of WATA Lisbon), and works currently as researcher and curatorial assistant at MAAT, also in Lisbon.

Joao Pinharanda holds a degree in History and a Master's in Art History. He has curated several official Portuguese art representations since 1998. He served as Cultural Attach at the Portuguese Embassy in Paris, and since 2022 he has been the director of MAAT in Lisbon.

Contributions by Denise Ferreira da Silva, Evan Ifekoya, Camila Maissune, Jota Mombaa and Joo Pinharanda.