With comprehensive texts and a rich set of illustrations, Henie Onstad’s new catalogue is a satisfying alternative to a COVID-19 restricted exhibition of Otobong Nkanga’s work

The catalogue presents the work of Otobong Nkanga, the inaugural recipient of the Lise Wilhelmsen Art Award Programme (LWAAP). Nkanga (b. 1974, Kano, Nigeria) lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium. Her artistic practice includes drawing, installation, textile work, photography, sculpture, and performance. She explores the complexities of human influence and presence in nature as well as in the global economy. 

The publication features contributions from Diana Campbell Betancourt, Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, Maya Tounta and Catherine Wood.  

– The catalogue became even more significant when we were obliged to close our doors to the public in November last year. Therefore, it was vital that the catalogue presented the exhibition as comprehensively as possible, despite the fact that it could never truly replace the sensations of a physical encounter and experience, says Tone Hansen, director of the Henie Onstad Kunstsenter.

Campbell Betancourt presents an overview of Nkanga’s work over the last two decades, while Wood lends her pen to Nkanga’s performances that so powerfully activate her object-based installations. Weaving together broader themes, works, and concerns is a captivating dialogue between the artist and Ndikung. Finally, Tounta introduces the reader to the artist’s extensive and ongoing Carved to Flow project. The catalogue also contains a foreword by LWAAP’s founder Paulina Rider Wilhelmsen and a curatorial introduction by Tone Hansen and Karen Monica Reini. 

– During the collaboration with the designers, it was of the utmost importance to let distinct aspects of the artists’ practice influence the final result. The publication’s Swiss binding, highlighting and exposing the book’s spine, calls to mind Nkanga’s practice that is itself remarkable for how seamlessly it connects the intricate threads of human presence, influence, and interaction, continues Reini. 

Otobong Nkanga: Uncertain Where the Next Wind Blows was produced in collaboration with the Norwegian design bureau ANTI. The book is printed on local paper and exposed binding results in a flat-laying format, which ideally presents the catalogue’s extensive use of installation images. The contrasting, visible thread calls to mind Nkanga’s textiles and is inspired by the inclusion of her palette in many of her completed works, while the copper-toned cover directly references works such as Steel to Rust – Meltdown (2016) and Solid Maneuvers (2015).  

 

Otobong Nkanga: Uncertain Where the Next Wind Blows is published by Henie Onstad Kunstsenter and Verlag der Buchhandlung Walter und Franz König. It is currently available within Norway at www.nettbutikk.hok.no, for international access contact Henie Onstad via e-mail: hokbutikk@hok.no  

Summary:

Title: Otobong Nkanga: Uncertain Where the Next Wind Blows

Editors: Tone Hansen and Karen Monica Reini

Contributors: Diana Campbell Betancourt, Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, Maya Tounta and Catherine Wood.

Design: ANTI

Pages: 215

Language: English

Published and distributed: Henie Onstad Kunstsenter and Verlag der Buchhandlung Walter und Franz König.

 

Contributors:

• DIANA CAMPBELL BETANCOURT (b. 1984, Los Angeles, United States) is a curator based in South and Southeast Asia since 2010.
• BONAVENTURE SOH BEJENG NDIKUNG (b. 1977, Yaoundé, Cameroon) is an independent curator, author, and biotechnologist. 
• MAYA TOUNTA (b. 1990, Athens, Greece) is a curator based in Athens and Vilnius. 
• CATHERINE WOOD (b. 1973, Hastings, United Kingdom) is senior curator of International Art (Performance) at Tate Modern.