The GAP of the Pompidou center was thrilled to welcome a new member of the acquisition committee for photography: Bernard Kwapinski who was in the company of Olga Nalca, the chairperson of the IFF, Institut Fotografii Fort. This Foundation was established 3 years ago and receives three photographic exhibition per year. At this stage all of them have been around the works of Polish Photographers. However, we already had the chance to envisage some possible crosspollination with SAFFCA around residencies or exhibitions of Southern African photographers. Bernard and Olga confirmed that in the future they would love to receive one exhibition per year from abroad. A strong show of Southern African Photography could maybe looked at for the years to come. In the same way, we, at SAFFCA, will envisage to invite a polish photographer in SA or in Saint Emilion.
We have now received the date for the exceptional retrospective of David Goldblatt at the Pompidou Center in Paris. The show will open on the 21st of February. Karolina LEWANDOWSKA of the Pompidou has been working for years with David and the Goodman Gallery to prepare a fantastic core show. It will have to be on your calendar in northern Europe at the end of winter or the early spring. Not to be missed.
On Friday I included in my journey a first visit to AKAA where I stayed from 11 00 to 19 00. Not like the evening before, the show on Friday was un-crowded. It was therefore easy to spot a few things and meet some fantastic people like Shayne Garde Girardin or Bruce Clarke, see a small homage to Ousmane Sow, stroll in the space of some great galleries like the First Floor Gallery from Harare, Afriart, Cantica Tabacaru, Gallery 127, Guns and Rain, establish some precious contacts with Estelle Guilié of the Montresso Foundation from Morocco and discover some fascinating young artists like the photographer Hicham Gardaf or Xavier Robles de Medina from Sumatra whom I had the chance to meet. We, at SAFFCA, will make sure to invite them as soon as convenient for a residency in our Southern Part of Africa or in the landscapes of Saint Emilion listed as a world heritage site by the UNESCO.
Maybe it is time for the fair to open to South America, Eastern Europe, and many others at the gate of the globality of the Contemporary Artworld… if it wants to become more inclusive and develop its footprint for the interest of the art aficionados.