AFROPOLIS - Stadt Medien Kunst

Today, over half the world’s population lives in cities. In particular, the regions of the Global South face rapid globalisation, with African cities recording the highest urbanisation rates. The African contexts have created specific urban structures, topographies and cultures, notably different from European-American models of urban
development. How do these structures function? How do urban dwellers organise their daily life? What issues are addressed in the African discourse on the history and future of cities? What positions do European and African artists take on urbanity in Africa?
The Afropolis exhibition is showcasing five African cities - Cairo, Lagos, Nairobi, Kinshasa and Johannesburg.

Upgradasion, 2010 Slum-TV Slum-TV is a grass-roots initiative founded in 2006 in Mathare, Nairobi, primarily dedicated to producing documentary video clips. The Upgradasion installation produced the scenario of a slum development project in a style somewhere between a TV soap and a comic strip. Upgradasion provides an insight into the complex economies and power relations in a slum.

The curatorial approach highlights the interconnectedness of scientific and artistic
concepts, not only exploring urban histories and recent developments, but also presenting 30 artistic viewpoints on issues of urbanity about and from these five cities. The result is a remarkable synergy of scientific and artistic research, documentary material and artistic reflection. The works shown in Afropolis include graphic
arts, painting, photography, sculpture, installation, film and video art, as well as design, comics and weblogs.