Africa See Me, See You! is a photography exhibit curated by NYU‘s Director of Africana Studies &  Tisch School’s Associate Professor of Drama, Dr. Awam Amkpa. In efforts to create an open dialogue, Africa: See You, See Me! has brought together images of Africa from African & non-African photographers. The exhibit showcases how Africans view themselves when they are left in charge of creating/showcasing Africa’s image for global consumption juxtaposed with how non-Africans create & showcase the image of Africa for global consumption. Africa: See You, See Me! will embark on a global tour with its first stop in Lisbon, Portugal on October 1, 2010. The exhibit is slated for stops in Florence, Italy/ Accra, Ghana/ Lagos, Nigeria and New York City, with many more cities to follow.

The exhibit includes noted & unknown African & non-African photographers  showcasing their images of people, places & things in Africa. Some of the photographers include our own Global Fusionist Stanley Lumax AKA Stoneface Photography , Malick Sidibé & Lyle Ashton Harris, who we featured on this site.

According to the exhibit’s curator, Dr. Amkpa- he hopes to have this exhibit in as many African nations as possible because this is a dedication to Africa, from Africans & non-Africans. Africa: See Me, See You! is a showcase of Africa’s global fusion in making the point that Africa is the Beginning & The Future! Look out for this exhibit in your locally global city.

“Africa: See You, See Me! takes its name from the artwork on a Mammy Wagon that I saw on a Nigerian road many years ago. The truck overtook the car in which I was riding, spurting a dark smelly smoke from its diesel fuel, and leaving us with the lasting image of two eyes framed by a paint-streaked map of Africa. Within the etching of Africa’s map, nestled the inscription “See You, See Me!” As it crossed us, it inspired the occupants of my more sedate vehicle to wonder how we, as Africans, see and imagine ourselves, as well as how we want others to see us….” READ MORE

“AFRICA: SEE YOU, SEE ME! is organized in 3 parts. The first section features studio portraits of Africans seeking to write themselves into the urban landscapes to which they have migrated. It presents African photographers as they tamed, adapted and subverted the framing devices and photographic conventions bequeathed them by their former colonial masters. The black and white photographs by Meissa Gaye, Seydou Keita, Vandupuye, Ricardo Rangel, Okhai Ojeikere, Mamadou Mbaye and Malick Sidibe illustrate a tense dialogue between the photographer and the photographed as they collaborate in inscribing African spaces and “selves” into photographic texts. Other themes in this section include the structures of African cities, societies and communities in formation, and representations of “looks” outside the studio from photographers in every region of the continent. This part of the exhibition also includes photographs of some of Africa’s anti-colonial heroes who hoped for genuine liberation…” READ MORE

Here are a few of the featured photographers