Projects based off of the works of Kentra Gilbert and Lanre Buraimoh.
Both Gilbert and Buraimoh use contemporary materials to bring into public discourse traditional African spiritual customs and art forms that have been transformed in the Diaspora. The first project by Kentra Gilbert explores geometry and color utilizing modern house painting techniques. Her work is reminiscent of the sacred geometry paintings and the geometric patterns that are used in African basket weaving and African Diasporan craft. To explore the use of geometry and color used in her work the first project is a basket derived from the artisanal handbags woven in Mozambique. The second project is based off of Lanre Buraimoh‘s work “Musician”. Buraimoh’s use of beads to create movement in the vibrant scene of his work is derived from ceremonial practices of West African culture. The project based off of his work explores contemporary usage of the beadwork seen in African Diasporan ceremonies such as the mas making (mask making) of Carnival (known as Mardi Gras in the United States). This particular making project derives from the Elephant (Aka) Mask of the Kuosi Society, Bamileke Peoples, in the Grassfields region of Cameroon.
