Future Memories, an incredible series of works by Michael Tsegaye will be on view at the Walther Collection Museum in Germany in an exhibition titled, Recent Histories: Contemporary African Photography and Video Art.
Future Memories is a body of work that began in 2006. As a result of the rapid urban development, old neighbourhoods across the city were being levelled to make way for the latest high raises. This body of work captures and immortalises what will— or already has— faded into the past. In a sense, the series provides a visual tour through the Addis, Michael knew and grew up in, showing an unfamiliar visitor what I he has experienced.
The exhibition unites the perspectives of fourteen contemporary artists of African descent, born in the early 1970s and onwards. They investigate social identity, questions of belonging, and an array of sociopolitical concerns—including migration, lineage, and the legacies of colonialism—as well as personal experiences. By highlighting specific creative approaches and studying the sites and collective platforms that enable these practices, this exhibition examines the critical mass that has gathered across generations of African image-makers and lens-based artists. In accentuating different perspectives and considering the infrastructures that often link them, Recent Histories provides a point of entry to engage critically with current practices, and opens up considerations about how to conceptualize the frameworks of contemporary African photography and video art.
The exhibition, organized by the curatorial team of Daniela Baumann, Joshua Chuang, and Oluremi C. Onabanjo, will be on view at The Walther Collection in Neu-Ulm, Germany, beginning May 7, 2017, and will be accompanied by a catalogue published by Steidl/The Walther Collection.
The Walther Collection
Reichenauerstr. 21
89233 Neu-Ulm, Germany
5 July - 11 December 2017
https://www.walthercollection.com/en/neu-ulm/exhibitions/recent-histories-1