By John Owoo
(Accra – Ghana)
An intriguing dialogue among memory, identity, and the everyday unfolded at the Mix Design Gallery in Accra through a group exhibition featuring five Ghanaian artists whose practices examine the systems and experiences that shape contemporary life.
The show, which ended on Thursday, June 4, though diverse in medium and approach, shares a commitment among the participating artists to transform ordinary materials and familiar narratives into reflections on society, heritage, and belonging.
At the heart of the exhibition is an exploration of the conditions that shape human experience. From environmental concerns and urban infrastructure to cultural memory and personal identity, the works invite viewers to consider how people navigate and negotiate the realities around them.
Opoku Eric Asare draws on the enduring legacy of Ghanaian highlife music through paintings, sculptures, and photographic interventions inspired by family albums from the 1990s. His layered compositions bridge past and present, translating memories into tactile forms that evoke nostalgia while underscoring the ongoing relevance of cultural histories. Through overlapping shapes and vibrant colors, Asare reveals memory as a constantly shifting, re-emerging force.
Environmental consciousness is evident in the works of Emmanuel Afriyie Arthur, who transforms discarded plastic bottle caps into dynamic sculptural surfaces. Rooted in the rhythms of Kumasi’s urban environment, his works speak to waste, resilience, and collective responsibility. By elevating neglected materials, Arthur turns refuse into symbols of renewal and social reflection.
Transportation and movement are the focus of Kwabena Fordjour’s practice. Drawing inspiration from bus stations, taxi ranks, and the rituals of daily commuting, he presents mobility as a social network that connects communities and shapes relationships. His observations of ordinary urban life celebrate the subtle interactions and solidarities embedded in Ghana’s transportation culture.
Meanwhile, Kwasi Darko uses photography, digital media, and lenticular technology to foreground often-overlooked stories. His works serve as bridges between intimate experiences and broader social realities, offering layered perspectives on representation, belonging, and community. Through shifting visual planes, Darko expands the possibilities of storytelling in contemporary art.
Completing the exhibition is Dela Quarshie, whose paintings inhabit the space between figuration and abstraction. Fragmented forms and repeated gestures suggest that identity is fluid and continually evolving. Themes of presence and absence run through the works, inviting contemplation of how the self is constructed, concealed, and transformed.
Rather than presenting isolated artistic statements, the exhibition, which is titled Conditions/Encounters, functions as a conversation. Together, the five artists show how contemporary Ghanaian art continues to engage pressing social questions while finding poetry in memory, movement, and material transformation.
