MOWAA announces inaugural Artist Council

At the core of MOWAA’s vision is a commitment to inspiring the next generation of creatives, artists and cultural thought leaders in West Africa. The establishment of the Artist Council expands this mission beyond the museum’s walls, ensuring that the development and evolution of MOWAA’s flagship programming remains artist-led. Through critical dialogue that interrogates contemporary artistic and socio-political landscapes, Council members help shape a programme rooted in collective visioning and artistic rigour.

MOWAA's inaugural council members were selected for their involvement with institutions or cultural organizations across the continent – either as founders or advisors – opening pathways for collaboration with MOWAA through joint initiatives and special projects that encourage deeper engagement and shared impact. Confirmed members include: 

Yinka Shonibare CBE RA (b. 1962, London, United Kingdom), G.A.S. Foundation; Michael Armitage (b. 1984, Nairobi, Kenya), Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute (NCAI); Victor Ehikhamenor (b. 1970, Lagos, Nigeria), Angels & Muse and Black Muse; Nengi Omuku (b.1987, Lagos, Nigeria), TAOH Africa; Dr Odun Orimolade (Lagos, Nigeria), YABATECH; Kaloki Nyamai (b. 1985, Kitui, Kenya), Kamene Cultural and Research Center; and Ibrahim Mahama (b.1987, Tamale, Ghana), Red Clay, Savannah Centre For Contemporary Art and Nkrumah Volini.

The Council reflects MOWAA’s commitment to reimagining and asserting the primacy of African and diasporic cultural production on its own terms, while grounding urgent discourse in real spaces and active practices. Council members will serve two-year terms, with the potential for extended service to ensure continuity and deep engagement with MOWAA’s mission.

“The MOWAA Artist Council plays an important role in ensuring that artists are not simply included in institutional narratives, but are instrumental in defining their frameworks and futures. That kind of inclusion is essential if we are to create sustainable systems of support for African artists. At the G.A.S. Foundation, we’ve seen how artist-led institutions can shift ecosystems from within. MOWAA is part of that growing momentum, fostering a more connected, future-facing cultural landscape across Africa and the Diaspora.” — Yinka Shonibare CBE RA

“Joining MOWAA’s Artist Council is both a responsibility and an honour. As artists, we are not just creators—we are custodians of memory, of community, of possibility. Too often, institutions are built around art without the artist’s voice as its foundation. MOWAA is reversing that. By centering artists in its structure, it offers a bold template for how museums can evolve—not only in West Africa, but globally. I look forward to contributing to a model where creativity, criticality, and care lead the way.” — Victor Ehikhamenor

“Sustainable progress in the arts requires more than individual brilliance – it demands long-term institutional thinking and action. MOWAA’s Artist Council embodies this approach, bolstering artistic practice with infrastructure and ensuring that those shaping culture help shape the systems that sustain it. MOWAA is committed to working with others to build a regenerative and interconnected creative ecosystem. Residencies, archives and arts education cannot thrive in isolation; they must be grounded in dialogue – between artistic experimentation, real world conditions and Africa’s deep historical knowledge systems.” — Ore Disu, Director, MOWAA Institute 

“I am delighted to be part of the MOWAA Artist Council as an artist and representative of Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute (NCAI). The impact of art institutions in Africa will depend upon our ability to work with other organisations across the continent. With this in mind, I look forward to developing the relationship between NCAI and MOWAA as we grow our community between Kenya and Nigeria and broaden the reach of art on the continent.” — Michael Armitage

“The future of cultural practice must be written with artists, not for them. This is not a ceremonial committee; it is an engine of collective authorship. Together, we will shape a museum that listens as deeply as it speaks – where creativity becomes civic leadership, radiating possibility beyond our walls.” — Aindrea Emelife, Curator of Modern & Contemporary Art, MOWAA