LAGOS BIENNIAL 2017
Living on the Edge | October 14 – November 22, 2017 | Lagos.
Living on the Edge, the 2017 inaugural edition of the Lagos Biennial encapsulated the foregoing ethos. The event, spanning two months, brought together thirty-seven artists from five continents to present a combination of new and pre-existing work across the city. Prior to the biennial’s opening, many of the artists engaged the city through extended residencies during which they collaborated with local artists and institutions and pursued independent research projects. Navigating Lagos’s oft-cited “chaos” and liveliness, much of the work in the inaugural edition waged organic responses to the city’s history and contemporary social dynamics. The core biennial exhibitions were held at the historic and, until recently, derelict Nigerian Railway Corporation in Yaba on the Lagos mainland. As suggested by its title, the exhibitions in the inaugural edition fostered interactions between visitors, artists, and local communities living in and around the railway terminal infrastructure. The result raised critical and provocative questions about art’s capacity to shed light on the city’s socioeconomic inadequacies and storied architectural history.
The Àkéte art Foundation is a non profit organisation with the main objective of hosting the Lagos Biennial. The Foundation is open to sponsorships, partnerships, and donations from private individuals, corporate organisations and institutions.
Lagos Biennial 2017 Team
Artistic Director
Folakunle Oshun
Guest Curators
Kwasi Ohene-Ayeh
Kelvin Haizel
Talks Program
Erin Rice
Akor Opaluwah
Technical Director
Jolomi Awala
Research
Opeyemi Balogun
Architecture Design
Jeanne Schulz
Admin
Feranmi Ogundipe
Social Media
Oluwatobi Afolabi
Graphic Design
Sodiq Abiola
Intern
Anthony Monday
List of Participating Artists for the Inaugural Edition of the Lagos Biennial
Oct 14 – Nov 22, 2017
Jelili Atiku
Rahima Gambo
Lena Athanasopoulou
Sam Hopkins and David Lale
Saba Zavarei
David Palacios
Arrigo Reuss
Lamis Haggag
Fati Abubakar
Delio Jasse
Kris Russo
Dunja Herzog
Abdulrazaq Awofeso
Rita GT
Niyi Olagunju
Phoebe Boswell
Mawuenya Amudzi
Adeola Olagunju
Ro Caminal
Ala Kheir
Wura-Natasha Ogunji
Sébastien Mazauric
Yara Mekawei
Eca Eps
Obuh Christopher Nelson
Amina Zoubir
Ayo Akinwande
Olivia Jasinski
Tito Aderemi-Ibitola
Kathleen Hearn
Poku Mensah
May Okafor
Tori Wrånes
Januario Jano
Taiye Idahor
Silas Mensah
Jerry Buhari
Youngjoo Yoo
Ayo Akinwande



