Hidden Histories #9 – Celebrating through Masquerade
Gambia celebrated its 53rd year as a republic on 24 April and for this occasion we seek to celebrate our independence from total colonial rule by showcasing our cultural diversity as a country in masquerades. Masquerade in Africa symbolises unity, as all ethnic and religious groups celebrate together through Masquerade.
SOAS Decolonising Working Group (DWG)
Hidden Histories
A seminar series curated by the Library Decolonisation Operational Group, led by Farzana Qureshi, Dr. Ludi Price, Amma Poku and Angelica Baschiera.
Friday 28 April 2023 at 6-9pm (BST)
Venue: Hybrid
In person: Brunei Gallery Lecture Theatre (BGLT), Brunei Gallery, SOAS.
Online: Zoom
Title: Celebrating through Masquerade
Gambia celebrated its 53rd year as a republic on 24 April and for this occasion we seek to celebrate our independence from total colonial rule by showcasing our cultural diversity as a country in masquerades. Masquerade in Africa symbolises unity, as all ethnic and religious groups celebrate together through Masquerade. This resonates across West Africa and its Diaspora as a form of cultural resistance. In other parts of the world this is called Jonkonnu (Junkanoo) As with many traditions, masquerades are undergoing transformation which sometimes leads to devalue their cultural significance. However, in The Gambia, efforts are made to keep the cultural, social and historical relevance of masquerades like the Kankurang, Zimba, Kumpo, Hunting Devil and others alive. A significant contribution to this is the listing of the Kankurang masquerade of The Gambia as one of the 43 cultural expressions and practices by UNESCO as a “Masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity”. Such recognition is demonstrated in The Gambia by the National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) that established, with the support of Janjanbureh community, the Kankurang Museum and Festival.
MBOKA Festival for Arts, Culture and Sports collaborates with SOAS to Celebrate our Hidden Histories through Masquerades with a special presentation on a new forthcoming book about the 200 year history on the Gambian diaspora in Britian, and live performance, film and discussion on the presence, symbolism, meaning, use and history of masquerade in The Gambia and beyond.
The event will be chaired by Professor Lucy Duran, SOAS (School of Arts/Music).
Speakers
Sokari Douglas Camp CBE is an Internationally renowned sculptor who creates her works primarily in steel. Her third solo exhibition at October Gallery in 2022, Jonkonnu Masquerade, included a series of new works exploring the masquerade of ‘Jonkonnu’ both within its Caribbean context and that of the broader African diaspora. Two larger-than-life-sized steel interlinking sculptures, Tussling Jonkonnu, have also been part of the Kensington and Chelsea Art Week, 2022. She has received several awards for her work including an Honorary Fellow of SOAS.
Hassoum Ceesay is the Director General of the Naticonal Centre of Arts and Culture in The Gambia. He is one of Gambia’s leading historians and has authored several books. His latest title is Masters and Servants: Gambian Chiefs in Colonial Rule : 1894-1965, (2023) which delves into the role of district Chiefs in strengthening colonial rule in The Gambia.
Professor Gibril Faal OBE Professor Gibril Faal is the co-founder and director of GK Partners specialising in socially responsible business models, sustainable development and programme implementation. He is a visiting professor in practice at the London School of Economics (LSE), Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa (FLIA). In 1988 he set up the Afrocentric ‘Naataangeh Study Group’ on African history and anthropology. In 2007, he published a resource paper on ‘Job Ben Solomon: Introduction to the Life of a Gambian Slave-Scholar’. In 2010/11, as patron of the National Portrait Museum, he advised and assisted in the efforts to keep the newly discovered 1733 portrait painting of Job Ben Solomon in the United Kingdom. In 2017, he initiated the Migration and Sustainable Development in The Gambia project (MSDG) in partnership with the governments of Switzerland and The Gambia. His forthcoming book is on ‘Gambians in the United Kingdom – 1820 to 2020’.
Njok Malik Jeng is the founding director of Yaram Arts, an NPO music organisation funded by Arts Council England. For over two decades, he has presented various renowned African artists, ranging from Youssou Ndour, Habib Koite to Sona Jobarteh and Dobet Gnahore. Malik is also a partner member at the Mboka Festival held annually in The Gambia, converging African Diasporans to celebrate their heritage. He is widely consulted on arts and cultural projects with particular focus on Gambia-SeneGambia.
Dr. Kadija George Sesay, FRSA, Hon FRSL is co-founder and co-director of Mboka Festival of Arts Culture and Sport. FRSA. She is an independent researcher and literary activist. She is the founder of the AfriPoeTree app on Pan-Africanism and Poetry and has edited several anthologies of work by writers of African and Asian descent. She has received several awards for her work in the creative arts.
Small refreshments available and drinks reception.
Registration
To register for in person attendance, please complete this online form or email: cas@soas.ac.uk
To register for Virtual attendance, complete the webinar registration form.