Upcoming Armory Show Sets ‘Focus’ on African Art.

Namsa Leuba
From Namsa Leuba’s “African Queens”


For 2016, the upcoming Armory Show sets its sights on African Art.

This year’s Armory Focus, the invitational section of the Armory Show, is titled “Focus: African Perspectives — Spotlighting Artistic Practices of Global Contemporaries.” Curated by Julia Grosse and Yvette Mutumba, the first women to take the lead at Armory Focus, the show will examine art produced by artists of African descent from the continent and from all over the world. The curators seek to examine global connections and what it means to be an African artist. Grosse and Mutumba are also the founders of Contemporary And (C&), an online publication that highlights and discusses African artists and Afro-Diasporean artists.

“[…] we don’t believe that there is such a thing as ‘contemporary African art,'” says Mutumba. “This work is really part of a global contemporary, which is why the title includes “spotlighting artistic practices of global contemporaries.” But we also emphasize looking back on recent history to resist the idea that this movement is new. To further give a sense of history, one booth, for example, is given over to an older Sudanese artist, Ibrahim El Salahi, who has been working since the 1950s.”

For tickets and more information visit www.TheArmoryShow.com.