Why I Only Collect Contemporary African Art That Documents China’s Questionable Hold On The Continent

Don’t get me wrong — I am as much of a staunch afro-optimist as I am an art enthusiast, and I do solemnly believe in the importance of foreign direct investment [FDI] including the benefit of deepening ties with global forces. However, despite prospects of heightened prosperity by Forbes, like many skeptics, I have had and still have my reservations regarding the boom of ‘investment’ by the Chinese within the African continent. This is especially after hearing recently of President Xi’s pledge to recommitting $60 billion in aid and financing at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing. One cannot help but conjure questions such as: What is the long game/gain here? What lies in the fine print within the broad brush strokes of this equally broad gesture?
Of course, a more balanced perspective is the fact that this investment acts as the antithesis of the patronizing formerly adopted ‘aid to Africa model’ argued against by the likes of Dambisa Moyo. In fact the Zambian economist herself commends recent investment by the Chinese within the continent over the years in a 2013 interview given to CNN .

But, as a contemporary African art collector and investor, I am more intrigued by how China’s obscure well-meaning pursuit of Africa is captured in juxtaposed satire by great contemporary African artists like Michael Soi and Bright Ackwerh — both of whom feature prominently in my collection.
Beyond the evidence given that contemporary African art serves well as an asset class and investment, the manner in which I collect stems from a fundamental belief best captured in this iconic quote by Nina Simone — “An artist’s duty, as far as I am concerned, is to reflect the times”. I feel sincerely that by collectiong these contemporary African pieces, I am not only investing in protecting the narrative of a potentially exploited continent at the helm of a global superpower, but also participating in a form of passive activism — activism that seeks to take a second look at the quasi-colonial nature of China’s investment in Africa.
— “An artist’s duty, as far as I am concerned, is to reflect the times”


Michael Soi, whose work is widely collected by the likes of Casoria Museum of Contemporary Art in Italy, Standard Chartered Bank (UK), Michela Wrong, Sir Robert Devereux and Lupita Nyong’o, has a series of work aptly titled “China Loves Africa”. Within this specific body of work he openly addresses the questionable nature of China’s ever growing interest in the continent through a near primitive, simplified and child-like aesthetic that I personally found confrontational upon first encountering it at the Gallery 1957 in Accra.
His work possessed a strong underlying sacrasm which challenged the rational for China’s very presence in Africa against the claim and a comprehensive report by McKinsey that alludes to the fact that local governments are not being swindled by Beijing. Overall, I deeply feel Soi’s work has a sacred place in history in representing a great part of the China-Africa geopolitical narrative.

Similar to Soi’s child-like approach, Bright Ackwerh has a cartoonist aesthetic and an unapologetic edge to depictions of established and well-known figures [including President Xi]. One of the most significant aspects of Bright’s career which essentially drew me to his work was the fact that it had gotten him into trouble with the Chinese government before — the highest form of flattery in any case. It was a piece that made the Chinese government appear complicit in the practive of illegal mining {galamsey} by a Chinese immigrant operating within Ghana.
Soi’s work has a sacred place in history in representing a great part of the China-Africa geopolitical narrative.
For the most part, I feel only time will reveal the grand scheme of China’s real intent within the African continent. But, the one thing I am adamant about, especially as my collection grows, is that contemporary African art will play an invaluable role in capturing the impending rise of China’s increase in influence and power thoughout Africa —the epitome of a new-age colonialism.
