Curating as a practice of Love

19th of October – 6 pm

Conversation between Adama Sanneh and Dr. Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung

“In Greek, the term “poet” translates to “maker,” but I believe that the ultimate essence of a maker lies not in crafting objects, but in shaping space.” Ocean Vuong

In this sense, the curator and author Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung embodies the essence of a poet—a creator of spaces. Notably, the internationally renowned Savvy Contemporary stands as one of the most visible manifestations of Bonaventure’s visionary perspective. His practice centers on cultivating spaces of criticality and radical imagination, fostering dialogue, and forging unexpected connections, redefined the conventional curator’s role.

Since 2023, in his capacity as the director of the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Bonaventure has embarked on a new journey that brings about new inquiries.

How can institutions transform into arenas of critical discourse and boundless imagination? Is it conceivable to weave poetry into these spaces, liberating them from rigid frameworks? Can true transformation be realized? How does one navigate the interplay of power and poetic expression?

This forthcoming conversation becomes a journey through concepts and language, exploring the intricate dance between love, power, communion, and the subjective in the realm of the res publica.

Join us in the third chapter of our series, “Curating as a Practice of Love,” as the voices of Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung and Adama Sanneh converge in a conversation that promises to navigate the nuances of the curatorial practice.

Dr. Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung (born in 1977 in Yaoundé, Cameroon), is a curator, author and biotechnologist, currently serving as director and chief curator of Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) Berlin, Germany. He is founder and artistic director of SAVVY Contemporary in Berlin, the artistic director of sonsbeek20–24, a quadrennial contemporary art exhibition in Arnhem, the Netherlands, and director at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) in Berlin. Ndikung was the curator-at-large for Adam Szymczyk’s Documenta 14 in Athens, Greece and Kassel, Germany in 2017; a guest curator of the Dak’Art biennale in Dakar, Senegal, in 2018; and the artistic director of the 12th and 13th Bamako Encounters photography biennial in Mali in 2019 and 2022. Together with the Miracle Workers Collective, he curated the Finland Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2019 and was a guest professor in curatorial studies and sound art at the Städelschule in Frankfurt. He is currently a professor in the Spatial Strategies MA program at the Weissensee Academy of Art in Berlin and is also a recipient of the first OCAD University International Curators Residency fellowship in Toronto in 2020. His published works include The Delusions of Care (2021), An Ongoing-Offcoming Tale: Ruminations on Art, Culture, Politics and Us/Others (2022) and Pidginization as Curatorial Method (2023).

Program inserted in the project of conversations and publication “Curating as a practice of Love” coordinated by Mónica de Miranda and Adama Sanneh with support from CEC and FCT