The Need for Ancestral Legacy & Contemporaneity in African and African Diaspora Artistic Practices

Join the Ruth J. Simmons Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice for a lunch talk by Simmons Center Reimagining New England Histories Artist in Residence Sika Foyer.The gaze in visual arts has been dominated by imperialist, colonialist and Eurocentric perspectives. Hence, it is essential for African and African Diaspora artists to take agency in documenting their own legacies and paving the way for a deeper understanding of their work. Central to this is thecontemporaneityandneed for ancestral legacyin Black visual arts.Even when Sika Foyer says “I was born and raised in Togo (West Africa),” she finds herself wrongly tying her personal history to the collective narrative shaped by colonialist blueprints. These blueprints define what constitutes West Africa, the Togo region, and the Ewe tribes — their histories, cultures, and legacies — based on an imposed colonial framework. Foyer’s artistic practice and research focus on exposing what differentiates her cultural traditions and legacies from those of the colonialist narrative. This includes the techniques, materials, and color compositions she uses. For example,waterplays a vital role in her work, both materially and symbolically. Historically, the Ewe tribes settled along the Volta River and its tributaries, expanding their presence across six countries: Mali, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo and Benin. This broader geographic footprint reflects a more accurate representation of Ewe cultural heritage, including folklore, oral traditions, rites of passage, music and dance — all of which are central to her artistic expression. The Ewe tribes’ connection to the Volta River transcends the influence of colonial and imperial powers whose narratives were often dictated by their economic and/or political interests. By anchoring her work in this ancestral legacy, she aims to move beyond these external influences.The talk includes a video recording of Foyer’s recent performance work on Governors’ Island which is central to developing and creating signs and symbols for her new language. She will discuss the four parts of the performance which include “Birth and Rebirth,” “Aging,” “Life Tribulations,” and “Life is a Gift — The Celebration of the Present.”Foyer will show how and why she uses the five elements: water, fire, earth, wind and aether (space) drawing on her cultural traditions and ancestral legacy.About the ArtistSika Foyer is a Togolese-American, multidisciplinary research-based and conceptual artist who explores the aesthetic abstraction in her West African Oral tradition, rite of passage ceremonies, and music and dance rituals, to create narratives that examine all forms of social injustice. Foyer exposes the process of becoming through iconographic symbols with tireless gestural motions and micro-repetitive layering, which she refers to as the Trickster’s materiality of wrapping, and its cross-cultural rituals. She examines the powerful impact of such materiality of wrapping through body movements and sounds to formulate a new language made of sacred geometric figures and forms, signs and symbols echoing those evidenced in ancient pictographic languages such as Adinkra, Nsibidi and Egyptian hieroglyphs.Foyer was first introduced to drawing and fabric/textile design at age 8 by her mother. With a Bachelor’s of Science in Economics and a Master’s of Science in Urban Studies, Foyer pursued a career in corporate finance and economic development while developing her artistic practice until 2017 when she returned to academia to complete her M.F.A. in Visual Arts at Lesley University, College of Art + Design in Cambridge, MA. Hence, her art practice is both a socio-economic and a cultural reflection on who and what we become, weaving and weighing in the yesterday, today and the future of our lives.Foyer’s artworks have been shown internationally and nationally in museums, galleries and alternative art spaces. Some of Foyer’s works are in private collections.https://www.sikafoyer.com/home-1Find her on Instagram: @sika_foyer (https://www.instagram.com/sika_foyer)