Kwaku Yaro creates mixed-media portraits using cleverly upcycled wax prints, iconic blue-and-red chequered ‘Ghana-Must-Go’ bags, and other urban materials. Based in Accra, one of the best places to visit in Africa in 2024, the Ghanaian visual artist namechecks his favourite art markets, beaches and Afrobeat bars in the hometown that inspires his work.
The Presidential Suite in the Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast AccraKempinski Hotel Gold Coast Accra
Gallery 1957
“I’m a part of Artemartis, an African art collective with a studio here in Accra. I also go to Gallery 1957, which was named to commemorate the year Ghana gained its independence. It’s a really cool place inside the Kempinski Hotel, with sleek, earth-toned interiors exhibiting top Ghanaian talent, as well as some international names. I’m currently their artist in residence [the residency ended in January 2024]. My show, Look What We Have Seen, invited viewers to engage differently with discarded, everyday packaging materials.”
Works by Deborah Segun at ADA contemporary art gallery, Accra, GhanaADA contemporary art gallery, Accra, Ghana.
ADA Contemporary Art Gallery
“[ADA Contemporary Art Gallery] is also a lovely place to be. I enjoy exploring the polychromatic displays by Ghanaian artists. Also, don’t miss Villagio just around the corner. These colourful, high-rise luxury apartments are painted in red, green and yellow based on the geometric patterns of traditional kente cloth. To learn more about Ghanaian art history, I go to the Nubuke Foundation, a futuristic-looking cultural centre made up of modern cubic spaces. It was founded to support local artists and lays on a varied arts programme.”
