10th African Arts and Crafts Gift Fair opens
By Selorm GBORBIDZI, Accra
The 10th edition of the African Arts and Crafts Gift Fair has officially opened its doors to the public.
Running from the 18th to the 29th of this month, the fair provides an opportunity for patrons to acquire handcrafted African products, making it an ideal venue for festive season shopping.
The theme for this year’s fair is ‘African Renaissance – Adding a touch of African pride and uniqueness to every home or office in Ghana.’
On display are masks, figural sculptures, artifacts, metal works, African textiles/prints, basketries, ceramics, potteries, wood carvings, antiques, gold weights, jewelries, bead works, necklaces, bags, hats, shoes, cosmetics, paintings, among other items.
Manager of the African Art and Culture Development Company, Albert Quansah, explained that as much as the aim of the fair is to sell the wares, it also has the aim of creating an appetite for the consumption of African art and similar articles among the local population.
“The basic idea of the fair is to let Ghanaians and Africans in general, adopt handicrafts and other things as gifts for their loved ones and families.”
He noted that this has so far been an uphill task as there has historically been little appetite for handicrafts, particularly African wood carvings, largely due to the fetish stereotypes that have been associated with them.
Quansah indicated that in spite of these challenges, there have been concerted efforts to educate the public on the artistic value of these carvings.
He was optimistic about the success of the campaign to market and whip up local appetite for these goods.
He said, “the mindset associated with the artifacts, especially the art works, people see it like an idol, but there is evidence to show that people exposed to these cultural items have positive mental health effects.”
That’s why we are trying to encourage people to acquire these items for themselves. It’s about education. We’ve tried to get them to change their minds about these items.”
We’ve been trying to get people to see the importance of putting these artifacts in their homes. It’s not idol worship,” he mused with laughter.
Ghana’s handicraft industry has a huge potential in meeting the ever-growing global market demands.
The industrial art and craft sub-sector contributed a total of $30,630,413 (1.08%) of Ghana’s non-traditional exports (NTEs) earnings in 2020.
The figure represents an increase of 110.88% from $14,524,610 in 2019, and is attributed to the increasing demand for made-in-Ghana ceramic products and expansion in capacity of production plants.
The fair is being held at the East Legon, adjacent the A & C Mall on the Jungle Street.
