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“Also wanted to say that Witnessed 1 looks FABULOUS! Love the design and paper and all of it, really.”
“By the way, I am reading Little book of big visions and I´m absolutely amazed. this book needed to be written! thank you so much!”
Artists of African Descent Living in Germany Yvette Mutumba . This essay outlines the perspectives of visual artists of African descent based in Germany on perceptions of, and approaches towards, their situation and working conditions in the German context. I firstly consider the personal experiences and expectations of those artists, who migrated from different African nations to live and work in Germany. Subsequently, I outline the situation and experiences of Afro-German artists which differ from those of the artists who immigrated into Germany, as they were born and raised in a society that still often regards them as “foreigners”. In this context I consider the ideas of audiences regarding artistic productions by artists of African descent. How do artists deal with problematic attitudes towards their art? In the subsequent sections I examine the different aspects, subjects and approaches of the artistic productions of German-based artists of African descent. These artists are part of a marginalised population group of individuals.  To what extent do they feel obliged or even want to act as representatives of this group they belong to? It is important to point out that most of the artists of African descent in Germany I consider also create artwork, which does not relate explicitly to issues of race, immigration or exclusion, but are either abstract or explicitly examine other widely varying issues. The final section of this essay presents examples of such works.  - Yvette Mutumba Artists of African Descent Living in Germany

Artists of African Descent Living in Germany

Yvette Mutumba

.

This essay outlines the perspectives of visual artists of African descent based in Germany on perceptions of, and approaches towards, their situation and working conditions in the German context. I firstly consider the personal experiences and expectations of those artists, who migrated from different African nations to live and work in Germany. Subsequently, I outline the situation and experiences of Afro-German artists which differ from those of the artists who immigrated into Germany, as they were born and raised in a society that still often regards them as “foreigners”. In this context I consider the ideas of audiences regarding artistic productions by artists of African descent. How do artists deal with problematic attitudes towards their art? In the subsequent sections I examine the different aspects, subjects and approaches of the artistic productions of German-based artists of African descent. These artists are part of a marginalised population group of individuals.  To what extent do they feel obliged or even want to act as representatives of this group they belong to? It is important to point out that most of the artists of African descent in Germany I consider also create artwork, which does not relate explicitly to issues of race, immigration or exclusion, but are either abstract or explicitly examine other widely varying issues. The final section of this essay presents examples of such works. 

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Yvette Mutumba

Artists of African Descent Living in Germany

Black Beautitude Asoka Esuruoso . …As my grandmother knelt me down to pray she was asking her God to look over me and too instill a sense of wholeness within me. She wanted me to feel whole within myself, and through the art and writing I have been able to create over the last few years in Germany, with the help of the Black German community I have reached further now than I ever have towards feeling as an artist that sense of wholeness, towards feeling complete. My first articles have been published here and my first paintings have been shown here. I worked for over a year with fellow women of color to create a non-profit, connecting art to those in Germany’s refugee camps here. I have made countless friends and acquaintances on the streets of this city, and each of us has in their own way worked to add our voices, and a stroke of color to the portrait of current Black Identity. There are countless Black communities across the world, and yet at this moment, maybe simply because of where I physically stand, I am writing this paper as a thank you letter to both my grandmother and the Black community of Germany. She helped to lift me up, and they helped to give me wings… — Asoka Esuruoso Black Beautitude

Black Beautitude

Asoka Esuruoso

.

…As my grandmother knelt me down to pray she was asking her God to look over me and too instill a sense of wholeness within me. She wanted me to feel whole within myself, and through the art and writing I have been able to create over the last few years in Germany, with the help of the Black German community I have reached further now than I ever have towards feeling as an artist that sense of wholeness, towards feeling complete. My first articles have been published here and my first paintings have been shown here. I worked for over a year with fellow women of color to create a non-profit, connecting art to those in Germany’s refugee camps here. I have made countless friends and acquaintances on the streets of this city, and each of us has in their own way worked to add our voices, and a stroke of color to the portrait of current Black Identity. There are countless Black communities across the world, and yet at this moment, maybe simply because of where I physically stand, I am writing this paper as a thank you letter to both my grandmother and the Black community of Germany. She helped to lift me up, and they helped to give me wings…

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Asoka Esuruoso

Black Beautitude


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