10 Dec 2013

AtWork: A New Chapter in Abidjan

AtWork is a project by lettera27 Foundation based on a collection of 'artist notebooks', unique pieces of work created by different artists on Moleskine notebooks, reflecting the variety, wealth and complexity of contemporary art. Thanks to an online exhibition (www.atwork27.org), AtWork becomes a vehicle for the circulation of knowledge and the diffusion of works of art under a free license (CC BY_SA). AtWork focuses on the African continent and progresses through various chapters, collecting the in vivo experiences re-invented by participants and becoming richer at every step. This process is shaped by the direct experiences of the people who contribute to making it and becomes an instrument that does not propose pre-established contents, but rather develops dynamic interactions with the public. The collection of notebooks displayed on digital tablets and the results of the various workshops together create a new model of exhibition, which allows us to experience a sort of analytical adventure.

After a first chapter in Dakar and workshop in Adliya, Bahrain, a new chapter of AtWork will take place in Abidjan, where a collection of notebooks will be exhibited from December 14, 2013 to February 1, 2014. The exhibition was preceded by a workshop held in April 2013 under the guidance of artist Jems Robert Koko Bi. On this occasion, participants created their notebooks starting from a reflection on creativity and free license and focusing on the theme 'My identity and my story.' Regarded as a construction of visual metaphors for the status of knowledge, art was used by Koko Bi as a means for workshop participants to discover themselves, know their culture and history, and reflect on their own identity with the aim of 're-inventing,' rather than 're-appropriating,' it.

02 AtWork_Abidjan 2013 is the result of a dialogue between the Donwahi Foundation and lettera27 Foundation. The latter aims to promote the right to literacy and education and, more generally, access to knowledge and information, while the Donwahi Foundation for Contemporary Art operates in the socio-cultural field.

Curator: Katia Anguelova
Advisor: Simon Njami

The project is supported by Moleskine.
02 AtWork_Abidjan is supported by Orange Abidjan.

Jems Robert Koko Bi (1966) is an emerging figure in the Ivory Coast's contemporary art scene. After studying at the National Institute of Arts and Cultural Studies (INSAAC) in Abidjan and the Academy of Fine Arts in Düsseldorf, he was among the protagonists of the Dakar Art Biennial. His works have been displayed at various international exhibitions. He excels in carving burnt wood, his favorite material, which he uses to create figurative, abstract and conceptual shapes. His works deal with the struggle for power (Installation de chaises, 2013) and 'brain drain' (Convoi royal, 2010). He currently lives and works in Essen, Germany. / www.jemskokobi.com/

Workshop Participants: Konan K. Dieudonné Affroumou, Yves Constantin Amangiua, Arnaud Amian, Koffi Kra Emmanuel Appo, Molina Molina, Bahébua E. Serge Kouame, Konan Frank Ouaka, Elie Toure, F. Vivien Silue, Siaka Siaka, Antonin Lagarde, Dune Perez, Nemlin Serge Nemlin, Hie Bouadi Mardocche, Max-Jaures Kouassi, Koffi Josué Kouame, Paulin Monine, Richmond Nguessan Yao, Philippe Ekra Komenan, Ange Patricia Atsain Adou, Michaël Seka, Marc Leonce Yao, Blazi Stéphanie Assoukou, Sahoua Marie Donwahi, Ilan Toure.

Artists in the AtWork Collection: Siemon Allen, James Beckett, Beatrice Catanzaro, Baaba Jakeh Chande, Hsia-Fei Chang, Kenneth 'Zenzele' Chulu, Daniel Chust Peters, Marco Colombaioni, Michelangelo Consani, Daniele Costa, Gabriele di Matteo, Nicola Grobler, Lauren von Gogh, Roberto Paci Dalò, Maurizia Dova, Malachi Farrell, Seamus Farrell, Carlo Fei, René Francisco, Mohssin Harraki, Iman Issa, Ethel Kabwato, Fréderic Keiff, Daniela Kostova, Ola-Dele Kuku, Jose Lasheras, Goddy Leye, Audry Liseron-Monfils, Polonca Lovšin, Juan Pablo Maçias, Jonatah Manno, Map Office, Adriana Mariutti, Sanna Marander, Jabulani Maseko, Alzek Misheff, Ivan Moudov, Alioum Moussa, Elena Nemkova, Marcus Neustetter, Gionata Gesi Ozmo, Cameron Platter, Luca Poncellini, Luigi Presicce, Andrew Putter, Slimane Raïs, Virginia Ryan, Tere Recarens, Colin Richards, Ruth Sacks, Henri Sagna, Angelo Sarleti, Charles Seck, Fally Sene Sow, Pascale-Marthine Tayou, Enrico Tealdi, Tomaž Tomažin, Enzo Umbaca, Luca Vitone, James Webb, Sue Williamson, Hervé Yamguen, Virginia Zaharieva.

Donwahi Foundation for Contemporary Art: Created in 2008, it aims to develop, promote and spread artistic and cultural activities. Its name pays homage to Charles Bauza Donwahi (1926 - 1997), a humanist 'advancing in modernity without losing memory of his roots.' /fondationdonwahi.org/

lettera27 Foundation is a not-for-profit foundation created in July 2006 to promote the right to literacy and, more generally, access to knowledge and information. lettera27 is the 27th letter of the alphabet, the missing letter, the letter yet to be, the hybrid sign, the empty box, the link between oral and written words, the connection to the future, the intersection of analogic and digital.. /www.lettera27.org/

Katia Anguelova, independent curator, founder and co-director of Kunstverein (Milan), is the curator of the AtWork project for lettera27. /www.kunstverein.it/
Simon Njami, writer and art critic, is co-founder and editor-in-chief of Revue Noire Magazine. He is the advisor of AtWork and artistic director of the Donwahi Foundation in Abidjan.