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Morocco World
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Morocco World
Ghana's Seperewa Revives Ancestral Echoes at Fez World Sacred Music Festival
Fez – The city of Fez, cloaked in centuries of history and the whispers of spiritual traditions, recently opened its arms to a sacred sound nearly lost to time. At the 28th edition of the Fez World Sacred Music Festival, the seperewa, an ancient Ghanaian harp-lute, sang once more through the hands of master musician Osei Kwame Korankye and his daughter, rising artist and ethnomusicologist Rama Blak. This year, the festival served as more than just a cultural exchange. It became a ceremonial revival, an ode to ancestral memory and an assertion of African identity. In an exclusive interview with Morocco World News (MWN), the father-daughter duo shared their mission to reclaim and reintroduce the spiritual power of Ghanaian traditional music to a global audience. The Seperewa: voice of a vanishing heritage 'Seperewa is a traditional instrument of the Akan people in Ghana,' explained Osei Kwame Korankye, founder and leader of the Seperewa Agofoma ensemble. 'It's a very old instrument. History tells us that it was discovered around 1600, and this is the soul of Ghanaian highlife that we are enjoying today.' Historically a royal instrument, the seperewa once played a prominent role in Akan court ceremonies before it fell into obscurity during the colonial era, as Western instruments like the guitar gained popularity. 'It disappeared when the guitar was introduced,' Korankye recalled. 'And then finally, my grandfather, Kolo Opeini Kwabene Jakun, had a dream and rediscovered it. He taught me how to play.' This rediscovery became a generational mission. Today, Osei Kwame Korankye is widely regarded as the custodian of the seperewa tradition, having taught at the University of Ghana and performed across Africa, Europe, the US, and the UK His ensemble brings together seperewa, adenkum (calabash gourd), prempensiwa (lamellophone-cajón), and traditional percussion in performances that are celebratory and reverent. A musical legacy carried forward Also performing at the festival was Korankye's daughter, Awura Ama Agyapong, known by her stage name Rama Blak. A student of ethnomusicology at the University of Ghana, Rama represents a new generation of Ghanaian musicians who are reconnecting with traditional roots after growing up in a world dominated by foreign musical influences. 'It was a little bit of a cultural shock,' she shared. 'I was always hearing foreign music growing up. But then I came to university and began to explore traditional music. That's when my father started training me.' For Rama, sacred music holds a powerful, often unspoken message. 'The music actually communicates things that are too sensitive to talk about openly,' she said. 'Sometimes the music helps us express ourselves in a more coded language. That's why it's sacred.' A sacred encounter in Fez The Fez World Sacred Music Festival was the perfect stage for this message. 'This is not just to come and have fun and go,' Korankye noted. 'We are trying to prove to the world to understand our spiritual music.' The family was deeply moved by the festival's mission and spirit. 'Even my daughter was so happy when we arrived,' he smiled. 'We are trying to tell our listeners, I believe maybe our viewers too, that something interesting is happening, and it has started already.' Rama echoed the sentiment. 'This is my first time in Morocco. It's been an amazing time. The weather is amazing. The sound is amazing. Everything is working perfectly… Maybe I might not go back.' Korankye saw the similarities between Ghanaian and Moroccan musical traditions not just in sound but in spirit. 'This is Africa, so I don't think it's different from what you have,' he said. 'We are also here to learn more from Moroccan music.' Preserving the past, educating the future A central theme of Korankye's mission is education. 'It's an old instrument that the generation sees as a new thing to them,' he said. 'That is why we have started educating them. We do performances and demonstrations. We tell them the value, the importance of it.' According to Korankye, the results are promising. 'Looking 10 to 15 years back, I can see that there's a lot of improvement. The young ones are participating. So I believe it's in good hands. But it will take a little time.' The seperewa is now included in university music programs in Ghana, thanks in part to Korankye's advocacy and teaching. 'It has been inculcated into our educational system, which is very good,' said Rama. 'It's educating young ones about traditional music. And my father has also been training me how to play the traditional instruments. So I think it's working. It's just going to take a little time.' The growing visibility of seperewa music beyond Africa is a source of pride and motivation for the Agofoma ensemble. 'People love it,' Korankye affirmed. 'We had a performance before coming here, and looking at the demand, I think it's awesome. People want to listen to more because it has become a new thing to them.' He emphasized that careful presentation and modernization are key to its appeal. 'The way we have packaged it, people love it. There is hope… we call it 'more fire', we need to put more fire in it to encourage them.' A message from Fez to the world For Korankye and Rama, the experience at Fez is more than a performance opportunity, it is a call to action. Korankye expressed a desire to replicate the festival model in Ghana. 'I think we should also do the same thing in Ghana, so that the scholars will have the opportunity to write more things. The young ones will also have the opportunity to see and appreciate our culture too.' The seperewa's reawakening is a story of cultural revival and a testament to resilience, memory, and the power of music to transcend time. Through the strings of his harp-lute, Korankye is echoing the voices of generations past, with his daughter ensuring those echoes carry into the future.
Business Mayor
21-05-2025
- Health
- Business Mayor
adjaye associates unveils rammed earth children's cancer research centre for ghana
The design for an International Children's Cancer Research Centre, recently unveiled by Adjaye Associates, begins with the land. Set to perch along the eastern slopes of the Atewa Range in Kyebi, Ghana, the proposed ICCRC is grounded in its setting before it rises in form. From the approach, the landscape of dense forests and filtered sunlight sets the tone. It is this atmosphere of continuity that guides the healthcare facility's masterplan, which holds the promise of both care and research for West Africa's youngest cancer patients. The center is designed as a holistic campus for the Wish4Life Foundation. Adjaye Associates organizes the 225,000-square-meter site into a network of buildings that hold more than function. Each structure — hospital, research lab, training institute, family residence, and chapel — participates in a larger rhythm of movement and repose. The spaces are open to the air and shaded from the sun, responding to the region's climate as well as its cultural logics. The unimposing architecture settles into the terrain with a clarity that seeks to invite trust. visualizations © Adjaye Associates adjaye associates draws from Akan Traditions With the International Children's Cancer Research Centre, the architects at Adjaye Associates draw from the Akan worldview. This proposes that illness results from a disturbance of personal, communal, and environmental harmony. Courtyards shaped like the Fihankra, or traditional compound, organize the campus into nested zones of rest and interaction. These enclosures hold the cadence of daily life, offering open-air rooms for conversation, reflection, and retreat. In Adjaye Associates' design, care is inseparable from architecture. The complex will be built from earth — rammed, pressed, and baked into slabs and bricks. Timber and clay, shaped by local hands, bring continuity between building and community. The Welcome Centre greets patients and families with the soft tactility of earth walls, while concrete screens in clinical zones reference Kente cloth, a gesture to ancestral pattern and meaning. Each material carries its own history into the future. Adjaye Associates unveils a cancer research center as a new model for pediatric care in Ghana A new precedent for a Cancer Research Centre Adjaye Associates follows a low-energy design ethos with its International Children's Cancer Research Centre. The team employs passive cooling techniques, photovoltaic systems, and orientation strategies specific to the site. These decisions are embedded in the architecture, not appended to it, forming an infrastructure of resilience. The goal is to create a self-sustaining facility that can adapt to environmental change while maintaining a high standard of care. Here, a different model for pediatric healthcare is proposed. It refuses the imported template of compartmentalized buildings and anonymous corridors. Instead, it cultivates a campus in which care, learning, worship, and research support one another in spatial continuity. This vision expands the definition of a hospital, suggesting that architecture itself can foster dignity, belonging, and healing. A presentation of the proposal is currently exhibited at the Time Space Existence show during the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale. It will be housed in Palazzo Bembo through November, and places Ghana on an international stage. the ICCRC is sited on the forested slopes of the Atewa Range in Kyebi Read More The Zillow App Will Now Show a Home's Climate Risks the campus integrates clinical research, educational, and residential functions into one connected whole materials such as rammed earth, brick, and timber are locally-sourced and crafted by local builders
Time of India
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Payal Kapadia brings quiet power to Cannes 2025 in a deconstructed suit
Payal Kapadia, as a Cannes jury member, made a powerful statement at the 78th Festival de Cannes opening ceremony. She opted for a deconstructed plaid suit by Arjun Saluja, styled by Indrakshi Pattanaik, drawing inspiration from 1980s power dressing. Kapadia complemented her minimalist ensemble with statement silver jewellery from Tribe by Amrapali, reflecting worldliness and rootedness. Acclaimed Indian filmmaker and Cannes jury member Payal Kapadia made an understated yet powerful style statement at the opening ceremony of the 78th Festival de Cannes. Eschewing the usual red carpet glamour, Kapadia arrived in a sharply tailored, deconstructed plaid suit by Rishta designer Arjun Saluja, an ensemble that redefined what red carpet dressing can look like when intellect meets intention. Styled by long-time friend and collaborator Indrakshi Pattanaik, the look drew inspiration from 1980s power dressing but with a subtle, contemporary edge. 'Payal loves the aesthetics of the 80s-structured, smart, and full of presence,' Indrakshi shared. 'We wanted her outfit to feel like an extension of her - intelligent, grounded, and expressive. Arjun was the perfect partner for that vision.' The suit, in muted grey tones, balanced authority with ease. Clean lines, asymmetric tailoring, and a relaxed silhouette ensured comfort as well as character, an important consideration for Kapadia, who preferred to watch the screenings without the distraction of fussy fashion. The design also aligned seamlessly with this year's Cannes dress code, which encouraged pared-down, classic looks over extravagance: no sheer fabrics, no exaggerated volume, and certainly nothing over-the-top. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The $5,000 Hearing Aid Lie... Exposed! Prime Sound Learn More Undo To complement her minimalist ensemble, Kapadia wore statement silver jewellery from Tribe by Amrapali. A layered pendant necklace - drawing influence from West African Akan traditions and an oxidised choker with ghungroo detailing added a tactile richness to the look, elevating the outfit without overpowering it. The pieces gave a sense of worldliness and rootedness, just like Kapadia herself. Kapadia was in distinguished company on the jury panel, joining filmmakers and artists like Carlos Reygadas, Leïla Slimani, Halle Berry, Jeremy Strong, Juliette Binoche, Dieudonné Hamadi, Alba Rohrwacher and Hong Sang-soo-each bringing their own cinematic lens to the prestigious festival. For the official jury photocall, Kapadia shifted gears while still staying true to her essence. She wore a handwoven silk outfit in rich hues of blue and red by designer Payal Khandwala, radiating elegance through simplicity. Another striking silver necklace from Tribe by Amrapali completed her look, again blending comfort with quiet grandeur. As a host of Indian celebrities, from Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Karan Johar to newcomers like Nitanshi Goel,descend on Cannes between 13th and 24th May, Payal Kapadia's appearance is a refreshing reminder that style can be thoughtful, powerful, and deeply personal. In a sea of spectacle, hers was a look that didn't shout but it resonated. Future-Proof Your Child with AI Skills | Limited Early Bird Seats – 33% OFF! | WhatsApp: 9560500838
Engadget
10-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Engadget
Doctor Who ‘The Story and the Engine' review: Just a trim, thanks
Spoilers for 'The Story and the Engine.' Doctor Who lives and dies by the quality of its writing and acting far more than almost anything else on TV. Audiences may demand big explosions and trippy visuals but its best work is often done in small rooms. The Disney era began with an episode that, for all its glossy excess, rested its big moment on Catherine Tate's acting. Now, as the Disney era potentially draws to its end, it's once again highlighting what a smart script and great actors can do. 'The Story and the Engine' is a stellar episode and a sign of what Doctor Who could look like a year or two from now. Lara Cornell/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf To get Belinda home, the Doctor takes the Vindicator to Lagos, Nigeria, to piggyback on the country's communications network. But there's another reason — he wants to visit his favorite barbership, Omo's. The TARDIS can cut the Doctor's hair, but it's not the same — especially now he's living for the first time (that we know of) as a Black man. A trip to Omo's is a chance to both get a trim and feel accepted, telling stories and laughing with his friends. Belinda stays in the TARDIS while the Doctor heads out, past missing people posters and signs warning people to stay away. As soon as the Doctor crosses the threshold into Omo's, the TARDIS begins blaring red alert, much to Belinda's confusion. The missing people are here, in the barbershop, but Omo is no longer in charge, having lost control to the mysterious (and unnamed) Barber. The Barber has kept the men hostage, cutting their hair on a regular basis, with each one telling him a story as he does. Each story is broadcast on the inside of the shop's window, and as soon as they're done, their hair grows back. The stories aren't for entertainment, but to fuel an enormous robot spider traversing a metaversal web. Only one person is allowed to leave the shop, Abena, who brings the men food each day to keep them alive. Naturally, an immortal time traveler is a fantastic resource for stories, but his first tale is that of Belinda staying behind after work to save a woman's life. Whereas the other men's stories are rendered in animation, we actually see Belinda's story as live action. And, once the Doctor's hair is shorn, it grows back, ready for his next turn to be an unwilling storyteller. Belinda, after asking the TARDIS to show her where to go, heads to Omo's, where the Doctor is surprisingly happy to see her as she, too, gets trapped in the barbershop. Abena is hiding a secret, and has been hostile to the Doctor ever since she met him. That's because she's really the daughter of Anansi, the spider-esque trickster god of Akan folklore. Her father defeated the Doctor many (many!) lifetimes ago, insisting they marry her, but the Doctor skipped town, leaving her on her own. [Casual viewers totally lost as to what was going on at that point and why the Doctor suddenly turned into someone else, head down to Mrs. Flood Corner for an explanation.] At some point in history, Abena teamed up with the Barber, who isn't a god himself, but a form of fiction-weaving figure. He told tales to entertain and sustain the gods, designing the dimensional web his giant spider robot is currently traversing. At some point, he'd outlived his usefulness and was cast out by his masters, and so he is using people's stories to power his story engine. When it reaches its destination, he'll wipe out all the gods of myth and legend and take their place. Abena, horrified that her own family will be wiped out in the Barber's revenge, opts to switch sides and tends to the Doctor's hair. She tells the story of how African people under slavery would braid messages and maps as cornrows to evade detection. The Doctor's hair is now a map of the story engine's mazelike corridors, leading him to its beating heart. When the Barber tries to stop him, he (wrongly) invokes Hemingway, talking about the power of his six word story. Oh, but we're five minutes from the end, so the Doctor saves the day by, uh, playing a highlights reel of all his prior incarnations. The Barber, however, is a changed man, and comes back with the Doctor as the story engine itself collapses under the sheer weight of the Doctor's life story. With everyone free, Omo declares he's retiring, and hands the role to the Barber, who will use his powers for good. Abena opts to part ways with her friend, and the Doctor and Belinda head back to the TARDIS. James Pardon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf 'The Story and the Engine' is a phenomenal debut from British-Nigerian poet and playwright Inua Ellams. The rules of the barbershop and premise of the story is clear enough to grasp before the title sequence has rolled. And little time is wasted getting the Doctor through the door of Omo's shop, enabling him to engage with the problem at hand. If there's an issue, it's the same one that's dogged every episode this season: the overstuffed narrative that picks up and drops ideas in minutes that another series would have milked for weeks on end. The narrative and thematic density here includes nods toward folklore versus the mechanical reproduction of storytelling. An exploration of the nature of community, family, safety, betrayal, love and the value of revenge. Hell, the antagonist is a writer who's pissed off their overlords cut 'em loose and took the credit that was theirs to claim. Not to mention, Doctor Who is having to make a case for its own continued existence given the behind the scenes rumors. That's so much to cram into 45 minutes that you just want everything to slow down and let things breathe. As much as Doctor Who might be seen by the majority of its audience on a streaming platform, it's still constrained by its broadcast runtime. Like the rest of this run, this episode is just begging for more time to allow its textures to be better explored. In fact, as I lay in bed after watching the episode, I was thinking about how many of these episodes would work well in the old-school half-hour format. Three half-hours would give us more time in the barbershop and a more earned ending. 'The Story and the Engine' is already a chamber piece — make the CGI spider a barely-seen matte painting and use stock footage of Lagos and this could have easily been done in the '80s. Again, given the rumors that, without Disney's cash, the BBC can't afford to produce Doctor Who , we're seeing how great it can be when it's just got five or six actors in a single room. That's not to say the extra money isn't welcome: I also want to, again, single out how much great work the rest of the production team is doing this year. The story engine's heart, a beautifully-made heart-tree-brain sculpture, was another great piece of design work. And any episode of anything that uses Blick Bassey's "Aké" as a needle drop deserves a round of applause. A Nigerian barbershop is not the usual place for an episode of Doctor Who to play out, but it's also absolutely perfect. After all, one of the richest seams of inspiration the show has is to find the magic in the edges of the mundane. What could be more magic than people sitting around, telling stories and forming communities through nothing more than the cutting of hair. Mrs. Flood gets a tiny cameo this episode, popping into the hospital during the Doctor's tale of Belinda's heroism. It's ambiguous if the Doctor knows Mrs. Flood was there, or if her presence was only for the audience's benefit. Given the more standalone nature of this episode, we shouldn't ask too much of Mrs. Flood this week. It's certainly interesting to see what Belinda does and doesn't know about how the world of the Doctor works. My assumption is still that the Doctor briefed Belinda on the basics and even the more advanced details off-screen. Belinda's smart and capable enough that she'd ask the right questions to learn that the TARDIS wardrobe is also able to style hair. I am curious, however, about why the Doctor was so happy to see Belinda as she walked into the trap. And why Belinda knew what to do when the Doctor made his break for the story engine in the conclusion. That the costumes have changed since 'The Well' implies that time has passed for these two, so maybe their rapport has grown in the interim. Dan Fearon/BBC Studios/Disney/Bad Wolf If you'll allow me to go out on a limb, what if the real identity of Mrs. Flood or this season's big bad is in fact Fenric? Hear me out: 'The Story and the Engine' shares a premise with 1988's 'The Greatest Show in the Galaxy.' In that episode, the Gods of Ragnarok have occupied a circus to fuel their hunger for entertainment, killing anyone who displeases them. The Barber in this story mentions he wrote stories for several Norse gods and tries to pass himself off as one of them before his real identity is revealed. Now, if you recall, another Norse god the Doctor tussled with in that era was Fenric, the villain from 1989's 'The Curse of Fenric.' Which was one of the classic-series stories highlighted for the 60th anniversary's Tales of the TARDIS run. Given Davies' shot an additional episode of that run to introduce new viewers to Sutekh before he appeared in last year's finale, maybe the groundwork was already laid to bring Fenric back. Yeah, you're right, it's not going to be Fenric. When was the Doctor a Black woman? To view this content, you'll need to update your privacy settings. Please click here and view the "Content and social-media partners" setting to do so. The 2020 season of Doctor Who made a number of controversial changes to the foundation of the series. Showrunner Chris Chibnall opted to dump the series' original deliberately ambiguous backstory in favor of something a little more stock sci-fi. Before then, our lead character was an outsider who left their world and stumbled around learning to become something of a hero. The show's first four seasons build to the moment when the Doctor says 'There are some corners of the universe which have bred the most terrible things. Things which act against everything we believe in. They must be fought.' Like a lot of early Doctor Who , the character's development over time wasn't necessarily visible until you look back on the era as a whole. Chibnall threw all of that out, insisting that the Doctor wasn't just the most Special Time Lord Of All Time, but the figure who gave the Time Lords the power of regeneration in the first place. In one season, he'd turned the Doctor into the equivalent of Adam and Eve and Jesus all at once. He also eliminated the series' longstanding regeneration limit, saying the Doctor can change their body an infinite amount of times. Which rather undermines the action and saps the dramatic tension from episodes like 'The Caves of Androzani' and 'The Eleventh Hour.' These changes gave the Doctor an entire as-yet unseen first and second act, with the adult Doctor working for the Time Lord equivalent of the CIA before having their memory wiped before the start of the series proper. The episode 'Fugitive of the Judoon' revealed the identity of one of these doctors, The Fugitive Doctor, played by actress Jo Martin — the only time the Doctor had been played by a Black actor before Ncuti Gatwa and only the second time (canonically) they'd been played by a woman after Jodie Whittaker. The Fugitive Doctor's place in the series' history is left ambiguous, and she mostly spent that time on deep cover missions. When Davies' return was announced, I was privately hoping he would very loudly unwind much of Chibnall's Timeless Child story arc. Trapping the Doctor in the hacky sci-fi role of chosen one felt like an act of near-fatal violence against the series. There have been many other secret origin stories for the Doctor over its sixty-year tenure, but the others were mostly content to sit in implication rather than bellowed from the rooftops. It's here I must offer yet more praise for Russell T. Davies, who opted to Yes-And Chibnall's hackiest impulses. He has managed to integrate the Timeless Child story in a way that serves the character of the Doctor supremely effectively. Rather than focusing on the ancestral history he's focused on the Doctor as an orphan, taken advantage of by cruel aliens. It gives greater weight both to his relationships with his companions, and to the need for belonging that takes him to Omo's. And the events of the Flux miniseries have broken the universe so utterly that it's opened the door for the pantheon of gods to enter it. Not to mention, it offers a vehicle through which we can get more stories of the Fugitive Doctor that gets it out from under the more reactionary storytelling under which she was created.
The Guardian
03-03-2025
- The Guardian
‘People cry, get angry': remembering the enslaved in Ghana's remarkable sculpture park
At the end of a sandy path, lined with bamboo trees, lies a clearing with thousands of clay head sculptures. One is of a woman whose hair is half done, another shows a man blindfolded. Some heads have masks signifying royalty. In a small pond are dozens more sculptures, some with shackles round their necks. Each head placed at the Nykyinkyim Museum in Ghana represents someone who was enslaved and taken from the continent of Africa by Europeans to face a life of struggle, brutality and death. Clay head sculptures lie in water at the Nykinkyim Museum in Ada, Ghana. Each one represents someone who was enslaved 'It's emotional for me, I have to control my feelings every time I come,' says Ackah Komla Swanzy , who is a a griot (a west African storyteller and educator) and an artist who makes some of the sculptures. 'These are my own people. I view them as my siblings. It's like losing your family member who you won't see again.' Kwame Akoto-Bamfo, an artist, activist and founder of the museum, models a clay head in an art workshop for visitors The sculptures are part of the Ancestor Project, conceived by Kwame Akoto-Bamfo, an artist, educator and activist, who founded the museum in 2019. Nkyinkyim is an Akan word that means 'twisting'. It is also the name of a symbol that represents the nature of life's journey and the characteristics required to thrive in it. The museum is in Ada, about 100 miles (160km) east of the capital, Accra, and has become a place for people, mostly those of African descent, to confront the past through art and education. The 46-hectare (115-acre) site houses Akoto-Bamfo's studio, features a visual archive of African history and culture, including models of Indigenous architecture, and pays homage to aspects of black history that are often overlooked – such as the contribution of soldiers from African countries in the first and second world wars. Visitors can choose to stay overnight at accommodation on site and take part in art workshops, pilgrimages, naming ceremonies and initiation rites. About 3,500 clay head sculptures are displayed in a clearing at the Nkyinkyim Museum. The aim is to complete 11,111 of them Akoto-Bamfo, 42, who made the first sculpture of a head in 2009, says he was compelled to start the project after years of feeling 'a very strong desire to do something'. Akoto-Bamfo made his first sculpture of a head in 2009, and founded the Nkyinkyim Museum in 2019 Growing up, he experienced the legacies of colonialism. Ghana achieved independence from the British in 1957. At school, teachers preferred people with European accents, he remembers; and a university education and spending time abroad were highly valued. 'The closer you were to whiteness, the better for you in our societies. And even to a large extent, it's the same now,' he says. But he knew it was wrong. 'There's always something innate that draws your attention to humanity and human rights and justice … You notice something needs to be addressed and that's what happened for me.' He adds: 'It was representation. It was telling our side of the story … I knew I wanted to address the anger and the pain and the frustrations.' Head sculptures are a way of documenting family portraits of the dead among the Akans, the largest and most prominent ethic group in Ghana, to which Akoto-Bamfo belongs. For generations, this practice served to commemorate African ancestors until colonialism misrepresented it as linked with evil, and pushed it to the sidelines. Ackah Komla Swanzy, an artist and griot, stands amid some of the thousands of sculptures at the Nkyinkyim Museum Each head takes Akoto-Bamfo up to three weeks to complete. He has a team of apprentices who help. Some, he says, are based on visions, but many are likenesses of real people. At first, he used family and friends as inspiration, but now he gets requests and photos from all over the world. The only requirement is that an individual should have a relative who is black. There are now more than 3,500 sculptures, but the aim is to make and display 11,111 heads, a number that symbolises unity for the clearing are baobab and acacia trees, known for their medicinal properties. It is a sacred place where traditional priests and priestesses come to pray, and to conduct ceremonies and processions. The heads surround baobab trees, which are known for their medicinal properties Visitors include school groups as well as many African Americans and others from the diaspora. Hollywood actor Samuel L Jackson featured the project in his series Enslaved, the vice-president of Costa Rica has visited, and so has the US ambassador and the deputy British high commissioner in Ghana. Visits can be highly charged and emotional. Akoto-Bamfo has seen people cry, laugh as well as get angry. He has been at the receiving end of people's grievances around slavery and other continuing human rights abuses. Some people have asked why he allows white people into the space. The museum site also features a visual archive of African history and culture 'Sometimes, when people vent to me, they forget I am also black and I'm also African,' he says. 'They will pour their grievances into me like I was the other and, even though I know that is not their intention, that's a lot to take in.' The psychological load has taken its toll on Akoto-Bamfo. In 2020, he started having panic attacks and has had to seek medical treatment on a few occasions. Visitors from Germany and the UK take part in an art workshop led by Akoto-Bamfo He began therapy and has learned to control what he takes on, though he admits, his is 'a tough role to play'. One day, he would like to be able to rest, but for now he can't see beyond his 'sweet burden', finishing the 11,111 sculptures he has committed to. The project is entirely funded by Akoto-Bamfo through art commissions and public appearances. 'The bravest thing you can do as an artist is to pick up an uncomfortable human rights issue because people want to be happy with art,' he says. 'People want to sip wine and feel good about themselves.' Statues of twins, meant to represent healing, stand at the entrance to the clearing
