By John Owoo
(In Accra – Ghana)
An exhibition of paintings by Naa Chainkua Reindorf that serve as an initial visual introduction to the seven characters that make up “Mawu Nyonu” is currently underway at the Nubuke Foundation in Accra.
Mawu Nyonu (roughly translated from Ewe as “God is a Woman”) is a fictional secret society of Reindorf’s imagination that explores deviance and nonconformity through the art of masquerading, which is prevalent in diverse African societies.
Armed with deep inspiration from her experiences as well as historical descriptions of the “Mino Warriors” (a Dahomean all-female military regiment and the hierarchies in Vodun cosmology), she explores themes of world-building and storytelling.
This enables her fashion fantastical alter-egos rooted in the contemporary – each embodying extreme traits that explore and celebrate unrestrained self-expression – while depicting nude and dark figures of sexy female warriors and goddesses in various postures.
Employing lines that tend to border her paintings alongside textiles, Reindorf relies heavily on the fictional secret society she crafted, which explores deviance and nonconformity through the art of masquerading.
Undeniably, Reindorf expresses her fascination with how a human body can become a vessel for the projection of identities, experiences and messages while examining how fluid transitions can be between these projections.
The fencing material employed by the artist evokes borders and boundaries as well as confinement and limitations – and this is in the light of the huge migrant issues confronting the world on the Mediterranean Sea, the Sahara Desert and elsewhere.
A mixed media artist and mythmaker, Reindorf’s work – which ranges from large-scale tapestries and paintings to immersive sculptural installations – are realized through an exploration of and an ode to the rich cultural history of West African textiles.
Focusing largely on the complexities and visual culture surrounding masquerades and ceremonial costumes, she incorporates contemporary materials into her work while using these historical textiles and costumes as inspiration to investigate ongoing social topics centered on politics of dress, identity and gender as well as their close relation to culture and tradition
She has exhibited in several countries including France, Germany, Italy, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Nigeria, the United States and Ghana. She was part of a group of artists that showcased their works at the Ghana Pavilion of the 2022 Venice Biennale.
The exhibition ends on Saturday March 11, 2023.
