NYU’s Africa House, on Thursday, Dec. 14 at 6 p.m., will present a discussion about a developing program that is connecting African-American artists in a small city on the Delaware River with artists and foundational artistic and cultural influences in Ghana.
Africa House director and professor Yaw Nyarko will lead Chester, PA, artists Kenneth Hunt, Hayes McLeod, and Devon Walls in a discussion starting at 6 p.m. at 14A Washington Mews, 1st Floor, New York, NY. Registration for the event is free and open to the public.
In October, 2023, NYU Africa House and its affiliated NYU Center for Technology and Economic Development (CTED) set in motion the cultural exchange, bringing together African American artists from Chester, PA, and artists in Kumawu, Ghana, to kindle a deep heritage connection and cultivate an art-based relationship. The purpose is to foster not only a heritage connection, but an art economy between these artists from Africa and the Diaspora.
The Chester artists were in-residence at CTED and the Tweneboa Kodua Senior High School (TKSHS), where they collaborated with educators and students, resulting in a rich tapestry of art that will be exhibited at various venues, including NYU CTED Art Gallery, Bodomase Palace Museum, Bodwease Palace Museum, Kumawu Palace Museum, and NYU Africa House in New York City.
During the evening of Dec. 14, artists Hunt, McLeod, and Walls will share how the trip launching the exchange has inspired their artistic direction specifically in line with developing an African American-owned arts district in Chester, PA. The exchange will continue with Kumawu artists visiting Chester, promising ongoing cultural and economic collaboration that benefits both communities and the broader NYU community.
