CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN ARTS MAPPING PERCEPTIONS, INSIGHTS AND UK-AFRICA COLLABORATIONS 2 CONTENTS 1. Key Findings 4 2. Foreword 6 3. Introduction 8 4. Acknowledgements 11 5. Methodology 12 6. What is contemporary African arts and culture? 14 7. How do UK audiences engage? 16 8. Essay: Old Routes, New Pathways 22 9. Case Studies: Africa Writes & Film Africa 25 10. Mapping Festivals - Africa 28 11. Mapping Festivals - UK 30 12. Essay: Contemporary Festivals in Senegal 32 13. What makes a successful collaboration? 38 14. Programming Best Practice 40 15. Essay: How to Water a Concrete Rose 42 16. Interviews 48 17. Resources 99 Cover: Africa Nouveau - Nairobi, Kenya. Credit: Wanjira Gateri. This page: Nyege Nyege Festival - Jinja, Uganda. Credit: Papashotit, commissioned by East Africa Arts. 3 1/ KEY FINDINGS We conducted surveys to find out about people’s perceptions and knowledge of contemporary African arts and culture, how they currently engage and what prevents them from engaging. The first poll was conducted by YouGov through their daily online Omnibus survey of a nationally representative sample of 2,000 adults. The second (referred to as Audience Poll) was conducted by us through an online campaign and included 308 adults, mostly London-based and from the African diaspora. The general British public has limited knowledge and awareness of contemporary African arts and culture. Evidence from YouGov & Audience Polls Conclusions Only 13% of YouGov respondents and 60% of There is a huge opportunity to programme a much Audience respondents could name a specific wider range of contemporary African arts and example of contemporary African arts and culture, culture in the UK, deepening the British public’s which aligned with the stated definition. understanding of Africa and its creative diversity. Common answers by YouGov respondents were Programming must be contextualised, connecting ‘about’ Africa rather than ‘from’ Africa (eg. to the cultural, socio-economic and political Hollywood produced films rather than films made environments of the arts represented. by Africans). African Literature, music and visual arts can be Amongst YouGov respondents, many examples leveraged to reach wide audiences, becoming were related to African literature, visual arts and gateways into to other lesser known art forms. music. High-profile exhibitions and events can have Repeat examples mentioned by YouGov a lasting impact on public perceptions of respondents included El Anatsui at the Royal contemporary African arts. Academy and the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair. Current engagement with contemporary African arts and culture differs significantly between members of the African diaspora and the wider British public. Evidence from YouGov & Audience Polls Conclusions 44% of YouGov respondents said they never The British public’s limited knowledge of engaged with any form of contemporary African contemporary African arts and culture results in a arts and culture, 22% engaged less often than once lack of engagement with the latter, and vice versa. a year and 16% said they didn’t know. Very few This cycle of disengagement can only be broken people (5%) in this sample engaged regularly (i.e. by bringing African arts to a wider number of once a month or more). audiences. By contrast, the majority (76%) of our Audience African diaspora audiences are drawn to poll respondents said they engaged regularly, with contemporary African arts programmes that are 55% engaging once a week or more. representative of their cultural experiences and interests. 4 Lack of awareness, opportunities and time are the main barriers to people engaging more with contemporary African arts and culture. Evidence from YouGov & Audience Polls Conclusions From the YouGov sample, 21% of respondents said The common barriers of lack of awareness they weren’t interested, 20% said there were not and opportunities demonstrate the clear need enough venues showcasing African arts and culture and demand for increased programming of where they live and 16% didn’t know of any contemporary African arts in the UK, alongside examples of contemporary African arts and culture. audience development. Lack of opportunities and awareness were the main Lack of interest can only be tackled by sparking the reasons given by Audience respondents: 49% said public’s curiosity around contemporary African arts there were not enough opportunities to engage and culture, which reinforces the above-mentioned and 21% said they wouldn’t know where to find need for increased programming. more African arts and culture. A significant proportion of the British public believes in the value of contemporary African arts and culture. Evidence from YouGov & Audience Polls Conclusions Over half of the YouGov respondents either agreed A significant proportion of the British public or strongly agreed with the statements ‘It is believes in the importance and value of important and helps us to see diverse perspectives contemporary African arts and culture, once on Africa’ (57%) and ‘There should be more again highlighting the opportunity for increased opportunities for everyone in the UK to experience programming and audience engagement. contemporary African arts and culture’ (50%). Those who already engage, especially members On the other hand, an overwhelming majority of of the African diaspora, strongly believe that our Audience survey respondents agreed or strongly contemporary African arts can contribute positively agreed with the same statements (97% for both). to cultural life in the UK. Contemporary African arts and culture are “not just for Africans or people of African descent”. Evidence from YouGov & Audience Polls Conclusions 63% of YouGov respondents agreed with this There is a clear opportunity for building more statement. contemporary African arts programmes for all audiences – not just for African diaspora audiences. 88% of Audience respondents also agreed with this statement, including 59% who strongly agreed. The 10% of respondents who were in disagreement with this position remind us of the importance of However, 10% of Audience respondents also having a nuanced understanding of the historical disagreed with this statement, which could be and current global power dynamics when interpreted as highlighting issues around cultural programming contemporary African work. ownership and appropriation. 5 2/ FOREWORD The British Council is the United Kingdom’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We create friendly knowledge and understanding between the people of the UK and other countries. We do this by making a positive contribution to the UK and the countries we work with – changing lives by creating opportunities, building connections and engendering trust. We work with over 100 countries across the world in the fields of arts and culture, English language, education and civil society. Founded in 1934, we are a UK charity governed by Royal Charter and a UK public body. Our Africa arts strategy is focused on developing stronger African creative sectors that are better connected to the UK. We do this through sharing the best of arts and culture in the Africa and the UK; building audiences for the arts through the development of new networks; and communicating the work of the creative sectors. We work through our partners (artists, arts professionals, arts organisations, collectives and hubs) in the creative sectors of Africa and the UK to stimulate new ways of engaging with each other. One of our key aims is to see more connections between the UK creative sectors and young creative professionals in Africa. As well as building connections, we aim to expand the knowledge of contemporary African art in the UK with a view to increase work from Africa being seen and experienced by UK audiences. The British Council is therefore delighted to have contributed to the development and dissemination of this publication which we hope will be a useful tool for those already engaged in African culture or those looking to start exploring the innovative, diverse and ground-breaking artistic works young Africans are creating at present. Nadine Patel Senior Programme Manager Sub Saharan Africa Arts British Council East Africa Nights of Tolerance Production 2018 6 7 3/ INTRODUCTION The offer of contemporary African arts and culture currently presented in the UK is limited, but there is a clear openness and appetite amongst audiences for more. This report presents original research on present-day public perceptions and audience engagement with contemporary African arts and culture and explores the untapped opportunity to expand and improve the existing offer for the UK’s increasingly diverse audiences. Featuring specially-commissioned essays and 16 exclusive interviews with leading contemporary African arts professionals, the report provides new insight and inspiration on best practice programming, This report is a clear call successful Africa-UK collaborations and audience to action to present more development strategies. It also maps some of the audience-led contemporary most exciting contemporary African arts festivals and initiatives taking place in Africa and the UK, across the African arts programmes in arts spectrum, including Visual Arts, Literature, Film, the UK. Architecture, Fashion and Design, Performance and Dance, and Music. WHY DO THIS REPORT? KEY FINDINGS & INSIGHTS As a membership organisation that works to amplify In our polling of over 2,300 people,