I did not set out to make history. I set out to fill a gap that had always felt personal.
Last autumn, I attended a presentation by C& (Contemporary And) — an internationally renowned platform for contemporary art from Africa and its global diaspora — at an event co-organized by BAND (Black Artists' Network In Dialogue) and Gallery TPW here in Toronto.
The room was full of fascinating creative souls from all over the country, many of them in town for Art Toronto. The kind of energy you feel when a big idea meets the right moment.
C&'s Executive Director, Dr. Yvette Mutumba, was presenting the platform's vision: to create content about contemporary artists from Africa and its diasporas in non-colonial languages. For most people in that room, it was an inspiring concept.
For me, it felt like coming home.
