PARIS.- Since its first edition in 2016, AKAA stands for a multi-faceted Africa, wich transcends historical boundaries and whose voices resonate in the four corners of the world, carried by the vision of each artist. The third edition of the fair will be held from 9 to 11 November at the Carreau du Temple.

AKAA - Also Known As Africa is the only art fair in France devoted to contemporary art and design centred on Africa, with an average of 15,000 visitors in the first and second editions. This year AKAA returns with the same desire to showcase a vibrant art scene, brought together by all the artists claiming a link to Africa. As in the previous editions, all types of contemporary art expressions will be in the spotlight : sculpture, painting, photography, video installation, performance and design.

A new map of the contemporary art scene from Africa
With this year’s edition, AKAA rethinks the contemporary art map and places Africa in its center, to show the cross-influences between the art scenes of the continent and other regions of the Global South. New dialogs are therefore being identified with other territories : the Americas, Asia, the Middle East.

The 2018 exhibitors AKAA invites the participating galleries to play with these new openings between Africa and the Global South. The 2018 edition will host 41 galleries, with newcomers from Portugal, Italy, South Africa or Morocco to name a few. More than a hundred artists will be represented from Senegal, Haiti, Ethiopia, Cuba, France, the United States, South Korea, or Mauritius. AKAA invites you to meet these artists whose work show their links to Africa and other regions of the world.

In order to create a dialog between the cultural and commercial dimensions of the fair, Les Rencontres AKAA, the fair cultural program, will examine these openings. At AKAA Underground, our art laboratory, Les Rencontres AKAA will host talks and exchanges with artists, curators, journalists, writers, reserachers, musicians and other art enthusiasts whose initiatives support contemporary art in Africa and elsewhere.

For our 2018 monumental installation in the heart of the fair, AKAA has invited cuban artist Susana Pilar, represented by Galleria Continua.

An unmissable event
AKAA confirms itself as a convivial and pioneering fair, a place for discoveries where collectors and visitors may let themselves be surprised by the strength, the originality and the audacity of these contemporary art scenes.