Who Trains the Machines That See Africa?
The Sovereign Stack
As AI becomes the infrastructure beneath culture, African creators can no longer
Karibu Nairobi: Stamped and Approved
Sinatra Chumo on reclaiming the postage stamp as a site of cultural critique
The Hotels That Actually Know Where They Are
The Hotels That Actually Know Where They Are Cultural programming has become one of hospitality’s most overused promises. Here’s how to tell the difference between a hotel that has genuinely embedded itself in a place — and one that has simply dressed the lobby. Credit: HBD Principe – Oca Sundy Restaurant, Sundy Praia, Príncipe Island […]
Cotonou Knows Exactly What It’s Doing
Cotonou Knows Exactly What It’s Doing Amazone Statue, Cotonou, Benin. Photo: Présidence du Bénin. Every West African knows Cotonou, whether or not they have ever stopped to think about why. The auntie who goes for fabric knows it. The trader who crosses the border from Nigeria knows it. The goods that show up in Lagos […]
The Jersey Economy: Why Africa Is the Most Valuable Untapped Market in Sports Merchandise
There is a version of this story that begins at a football match. Maybe it is a World Cup qualifier
Guinea: A Textile Civilization in Four Systems
Guinea: A Textile Civilization in Four Systems By Mariama Camara & Oury Sene King of Kindia, c.1910, with two wives in Basse-Guinée textiles (tie-dye, weaving, embroidery). Courtesy of Duncan Clarke, antique postcard and African textile dealer. Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is rarely understood through its material systems. It is more often described through […]
Kondokpo: Georgiana Viou and Nokx Majozi at Sofitel Cotonou
On the evening of April 1st, inside the Sofitel Cotonou Marina Hotel & Spa, that shift took form around a table
Why More Women Are Choosing Not to Get Married or Have Children
Why More Women Are Choosing Not to Get Married or Have Children Seven women on what they are choosing instead Photo: Armagan Basaran From birth, it often feels like every girl in West Africa is being raised for two things: to be a wife and a mother. You learn early how to cook for a […]
Market Entry Is Not a Mood Board
Market Entry Is Not a Mood Board Why Brands Mistake Aesthetics for Infrastructure and What Credibility Actually Requires Photo: Carlos Idun In recent years, several major fashion houses have staged shows and campaigns across the African continent. Runway presentations in Dakar and Marrakech. Campaign shoots in Lagos and along the Kenyan coast. Capsule collections developed […]
Before Rio, There Was Luanda
Samba, the Rhythm That Refused to Stay Still