“New African Photography” opened at Red Hook Labs concurrently with the 1:54 Contemporary African Art Fair at Pioneer Works, underscoring the increasing prominence of work from the continent. (Both events follow on the heels of Africa’s turn as the 2016 Focus spotlight at the Armory Show in March). Spearheaded by London-based Nataal — a “new media brand celebrating global African fashion, arts, and culture,” in the words of co-founder Helen Jennings — “New African Photography,” on view through May 15, brings together images from six artists either based in or born on the continent. Nataal, which is the brainchild of actor and director Alassane Sy, ex-creative director of AnOther magazine Sara Hemming, and Jennings, former editorial director of Arise magazine, is at the moment primarily a photo-focused online platform; this venture in New York is their curatorial debut in a physical gallery space. While it would be profoundly reductive to underscore a shared vision between these creatives, Jennings does find that their photographs “are all engaging with creating new post-colonial identities, and redefining Africa’s future — [a] socially conscious mission shared by the wider creative communities in Africa.” Highlights of the exhibition include Johannesburg, South Africa-based Kristin-Lee Moolman's chic, erotically charged portraits paired with sparse urban landscapes; Namsa Leuba's carefully controlled, studio-shot images, which add a dash of absurdity to high fashion (like models posing with life-size animal statues while wearing plants on their heads); and Egyptian artist Owise Abuzaid's intimate, smartphone-captured compositions from his “Yellow Shirt” series, which place the titular item of clothing against striking architectural backdrops.
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