Ouagadougou vibrates to the rhythm of WEKRE, an international open-air contemporary art market. The event, whose name means “hatching” in the Moore language, brings together this year around fifty artists from Niger, Nigeria, Benin, Togo and Ivory Coast.
For her first international exhibition, Nigerian artist Ide Laila Halidou presents a series of three works entitled Anomalies. She hopes to see a similar initiative emerge in her country: “We would like to have a space like that for Niger. But we think it’s on the way. We have cultural centers and a Taewedo gallery. »
With the theme I Have a DreamWEKRE aims to be a platform for visibility and engagement. “It encourages young people to be able to show themselves to the public and it allows the average citizen to come into contact with art,” says Anne Marie Akplogan, a Beninese artist who is having her second open-air exhibition here.
The concept also appeals to visitors. For Paul Nikiéma, we must go further: “We must export these markets to our communities, to towns and villages, to motivate children and young people to take an interest in them. »
The organizers’ objective is clear: to bring art closer to the people of Burkina Faso. “We wanted to democratize art, make it accessible to everyone,” explains Aboubacar Sanga, promoter of WEKRE. According to him, the idea is to “work on art education and the consumption of works” in places less intimidating than traditional galleries.
Since 2020, the WEKRE collective has multiplied initiatives to raise awareness among the Burkinabe authorities and public about the role of the visual arts in social cohesion and economic development. An ambition that resonates beyond the borders of Burkina Faso.
