Help us celebrate Africa’s rich cultural and artistic achievements through our unique collection of Tibetan inspired African designed art rugs! Our dream is to take Africa On The Floor on a European and world tour!
About Africa On The Floor
Africa On The Floor takes audiences on a delightful journey through the histories of traditional African art and Eastern rug making, while brilliantly blending the boundaries between art, craft and design. These are truly 'rugs for life' because they are not just aesthetic art pieces meant for display but can be used, appreciated and passed on from generation to generation.
The exhibition tour features:
- 20 originally designed rugs by six African artists and modernafricanart.
- A video of the ancient Tibetan rug making process
- A 68-page exhibition catalogue
- A book launch to promote the 134-page hardcover book with over 100 full-colour photographs and illustrations.
![Ehi Obinyan's Eyo Festival (2003) – on the wall and Market Scene (2003) – on the floor]()
Ehi Obinyan's Eyo Festival (2003) – on the wall and Market Scene (2003) – on the floor
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Left to right: Bruce Onobrkpeya, Dance in the Bush of Ghosts (1988); Tola Wewe, Untitled (2004) and Family (2003); and Modernafricanart’s own design.
First we take Europe, then the world!
Our dream is to take Africa on the Floor on a world tour. This leg of the tour will extend its journey from Sweden and Africa to cities in Europe.
We want to share and spread the joy and sheer delight of contemporary African art through the exquisite medium of hand crafted artisan rugs.
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History of the Project
Africa on the Floor is the brainchild of Lande Anjous-Zygmunt, owner and founder of modernafricanart gallery in Lund, Sweden. Made with the finest quality wool from the Himalayas and master hand-knotted by artisans in the age-old Tibetan & Afghan tradition, the rugs have an extraordinary texture and visual richness.
Inspiration strikes!
One magical evening, I was introduced to Shahram Amir-Barghi, the creative genius behind Bargi rug-makers. As I learned more about their rugs, I was inspired to produce a unique collection of rugs using the paintings and textiles of contemporary African artists.
The Challenge!
While rug-makers can easily reproduce simple designs, and even images, it was not clear whether they would be able to reproduce an image as complicated and precise as a painting or intricately designed textile. Despite this challenge, a collaboration was struck and we embraced the arduous task of attempting to take a thousand year old tradition and turn it on its head!
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Artisan Hand Dying the Wool
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Artisan weaving a rug
The Result!
The project is a return of African art to the context of everyday function--art with a purpose. The rugs celebrate traditional artists while encouraging the breaking down of artistic boundaries with the creation of a wholly new category. The collaboration, which began 7 years ago, has culminated in an astounding collection of rugs where traditional artisan meets contemporary art and design.
Visit our website and learn more about how the rugs are made:
http://www.africaonthefloor.com
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The Artists
The works of such renowned African artists like Bruce Onobrakpeya, Muraina Oyelami, Nike Davies Okundaye, Sam Ovraiti, Ehi Obinyan and Tola Wewe, have been “re-painted” in the innovative, yet ancient form of Tibetan and Afghan artisan rugs. Each one has been painstakingly hand-made over the process of several months, and made the arduous journey from the Himalayas to Europe and to Sweden. The collection of rugs showcase the talent and vision of some of the best contemporary African artists working today.
Please visit our website to learn more about these talented artists: http://www.africaonthefloor.com
Bruce Onobrkpeya, Dance in the Bush of Ghosts (1988)
The Curator
Of Yoruba descent, Lande Anjous-Zygmunt is the curator, owner and co-founder of modernafricanart gallery in Lund, Sweden. Established in 2006, the gallery showcases the very best in African art. In 2012, Anjous-Zygmunt unveiled Africa on the Floor in Sweden and Nigeria, and is now pursuing her dream to bring this unique collaboration to people around the world.
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Why is this project so important?
The collection celebrates one of the fundamentals of traditional African art; wiwulo (Yoruba for "functionality") as seen through the new context and medium of art rugs while giving the artists a new and creative platform for presenting their work.
Celebrate Africa!
To the rest of the world, the image of Africa may often be associated with poverty, war, sickness and the likes. Seldom is something positive and uplifting shown in association with Africa. The importance of showing the positive side of Africa should not be neglected. Africa’s strong and rich culture; its art, music, literature, food and its way of life deserve more attention.
How will your money be used?
Our goal is to raise $7,000 to fund the developmental stages, promotion and preparation for Africa on the Floor's European leg of our World Tour. Meeting our goal will allow us to secure exhibitions in established museums and galleries in France, Germany, Italy and England, Canada and the United States. In addition, the funds will enable us to create promotional materials and do a new edition print of the exhibition catalogue.
Breakdown of costs:
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Research, develop and distribute 100+ curatorial proposal packages to galleries in Europe: $1000
- Marketing / Promotion (website, social media, postcards, posters, press releases) $2500
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Exhibition Catalogue – New editiuon with Thank You Page: $3500
TOTAL $7000
How your support will help!
As far as we know, this collection is the first of its kind in the world and is truly novel in its character. The rugs have already received much acclaim and enjoyment from those who have experienced the exhibition in Sweden and Nigeria. Achieving our $7,000 goal will help us to bring this incredible project to audiences in many cities in Europe. We need your support so we can celebrate African art by continuing to shine its light around the world.
Cost of Shipping is Additional and should be added to the perks amount. Take a look at each individual perk to know the additional shipping cost. We have used flat rates for 3 regions - Europe, North America & Rest of the World - this means that in some cases you may pay more and in some cases you may pay less. Hope you understand!
Special Note To Our Supporters: If we exceed our goal of $7,000 we can add additional cities to tour the exhibition!
Other ways to support the project
Please spread the word about Africa On The Floor and our Indiegogo campaign via email, facebook, pinterest or twitter. Thank you for your support!
For corporations or collectors, this may be a unique opportunity for you to support the project and add one of these exquisite rugs to your art collection.
Come check out the artists and project on our website and stay tuned with our blog updates: http://africaonthefloor.com
Africa on the Floor, In the press and beyond!