LOMÉ’S NEW CAA MUSEUM.

By Nii B. Andrews.

A largely state funded museum for CAA is on course to open in Lomé. 

It will be located in the former colonial office building named Palais de Lomé; it was first completed in 1905.

The current plan will bring the building back to life after it had been abandoned for 22 years. The unique city center park in which the Palais stands will also serve as a sculptural park.

Sonia Lawson the skilled art professional who will head the museum stated, “The objective of the project was to transform this patrimonial building, open it to the public, and show an Africa of today”

She continued, “The center is here to present the best of Africa not just from Togo and the neighboring countries in West Africa, but art and design from the rest of Africa.”

With a size of nearly 26,000-square-foot, Palais de Lomé will house a permanent exhibition space, an art gallery for temporary shows, an area for live performances, a section for photography, a bookstore, and two restaurants.

It is scheduled to open next month with three exhibitions. 

One of them, “Togo of Kings” (until February 2020), is curated by Togolese writer Kangni Alem, scenographer Franck Houndegla, and actor and director Gaetan Noussouglo. 

The exhibition includes photography, video, contemporary art, and traditional objects borrowed from owners in Togo.

“Lomé +,” curated by architect and artist Koffi Sename Agbodjinou, will constitute the 2nd exhibition. It will investigate the vibrant city of Lomé as an urban space with respect to past, present, and future perspectives.

The third exhibition will showcase, for the first time in West Africa, the work of the celebrated Togolese designer the late Kossi Aguessy who passed on in 2017.

USELESS TOOL: sculpture by Kossi Aguessy.

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