What makes the art season across West Africa so special? Is it the breadth of events, spanning a range of disciplines from art to film, fashion to food? Is it the electrifying energy in the air that makes everything ring with meaning? Perhaps it’s the multi-day fashion shows in Lagos or the thrilling discovery of new artists at art fairs in Accra. Whether it is connecting with friends or meeting fellow industry players, the art season in West Africa has become an indispensable period of cultural exchange.
Unofficially, late September to mid-December is widely regarded as the window for the art season in various parts of the region. In that span of time, the weather is perfect, the year is winding down, and the diaspora is gradually making its way back to the continent ahead of the even more dizzying December rush.
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Across Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and other parts of the region, art and film festivals, fashion shows, literary gatherings, and other alternative artistic disciplines are staged, inviting thousands of guests and artists to participate in discourse and a growing sensibility of the uniqueness of the West African perspective
Each year presents something different and exciting. There is something for everyone, and a landscape teeming with talent mobilizing to uplift the ecosystem
“Art season always gets me giddy. I look forward to seeing new and interesting designs,” artist and photographer Nengi Nelson tells OkayAfrica. “[This year] I’m really hoping that we see more emerging designers who are pushing boundaries of what African design looks like.”
As the 2025 art season kicks off, OkayAfrica talked to curators, artists, and cultural tastemakers from across West Africa on the art events they are excited to attend this fall
Find a robust list of the best art and culture events to attend across West Africa below:
Nigeria
Selected by: Edwin Okolo, Nengi Nelson & Chisom Peter Job
ART X Lagos (Nov 6-9)
This year, one of Africa’s most respected and anticipated art fairs turns 10. Founded by Tokini Peterside-Schwebig, ART X Lagos brings together a dazzling array of galleries and artworks across four days. Okolo describes ART X as an “opportunity to see art from across the continent as curators and galleries from other countries exhibit their most compelling work at the fair.” This year, the fair is taking big swings with its curatorial vision. It is hosting a presentation that honors the life and legacy of JD Okhai Ojekeres’ photographs. “ I’m looking forward to the ‘ART X Icon Exhibition’ that features a large collection of JD Okhai Ojekeres’ work,” Nengi says. “I think photography is often neglected, so it’s nice to see more photography-focused exhibitions happen.”
Lagos Fashion Week ( Oct 29 – Nov 2)
For essayist and storyteller Edwin Okolo, this year’s Lagos Fashion Week is one of the art season’s most anticipated events for its “diverse showcase of designers at various stages in their careers.” This season, which happens to mark the 15th anniversary of LFW, will host designers like Emmy Kasbit, Bubu Ogisi, and a host of new faces
MOWAA Opening (Nov 11)
This November, the Museum of West African Art will officially open its doors with Nigeria Imaginary, a groundbreaking exhibition curated by Aindrea Emelife and first presented in the Nigerian Pavilion at the 2024 Venice Biennale. Curator Chisom Peter Job says he is most excited to experience the opening of this monumental art institution and its surrounding cultural programs. “These events are a part of Nigeria’s growing art ecosystem, and it’s important for artists and cultural practitioners to embed themselves in it,” Chisom says. MOWAA is located in the heart of Benin and is priming itself to be a strong repository of knowledge, cultural heritage, and a source of tourism.
Dating In Lagos (Oct 31 to Nov 1) and “Sea Never Dry” (Nov 1)
Lagos is always teeming with experimental art experiences. This year, “Dating In Lagos” artist Lola Teru brings to life a stirring exhibition that explores the complex and tiring experience of dating in Lagos. The exhibition combines photographs with other tactile elements such as sound, performances, and installations to activate the senses. And in “Sea Never Dry”, a group exhibition at the Center for Contemporary Art engages with the legacy of Lagos’ Bar Beach and themes of resilience and belonging. Nelson, who is showing alongside other artists including Akinbode Akinbiyi, Odun Orimolade, Peter Okotor, Zaynab Odunsi, and Christopher Oduh, says the exhibition tackles “the evolution/transition of such public spaces, whilst considering other narratives around it.”
Lagos Fringe Festival ( Nov 18-23)
Lagos Fringe Festival is a multidisciplinary arts festival that combines theatre, spoken word performances, film screenings, comedy, exhibitions, and workshops for a riveting cultural experience. As Okolo puts it, Lagos Fringe is “a great introduction into the independent theatre, music and film communities in Nigeria.”
Ghana
Selected by: Richmond Orlando Mensah
“Memories In Form” Exhibition (Oct 25 to Nov 30)
This October, WorldFaze Art Practice presents “Memories in Form”, an exhibition by Selorm Amekorfia. “I’m particularly drawn to this show for Amekorfia’s distinctive use of fragmented mirrors, reflective surfaces, and sculptural forms,” Orlando explains. “His work bridges craft techniques and fine-art sensibilities, engaging deeply with themes of materiality, memory, and identity. The way he reassembles broken fragments into bold portraits and volumetric objects serves as a striking metaphor for repair and transformation from fragmented pasts to crafted futures.”
Senegal
Selected by Ayofemi Kirby
Partcours Art dans la Cité (Art In The City) (Nov 28 – Dec 14)
As Ayofemi Kirby, the founder of Gallerie36, an art and culture space in Dakar, explains, Partcours is “Dakar’s invitation to the public to discover the city through art, traveling across Dakar and surrounding areas to experience a variety of cultural spaces and featured exhibitions.” With so many cultural attractions, having a guide to follow and discover the gems lying around the city of Dakar is a core tenet of the Partcours Art In The City experience. This is the 14th edition of the art experience, which receives guests from outside and within Dakar and also opens up opportunities for gallery and art spaces across Senegal’s capital.
Dakar Fashion Week (Dec 3-7)
Dakar is driven by and defined by its attentive and glittering focus on fashion. “I always tell people that driving through Dakar is a feast for the eyes. Everyone is stunning, activities are happening everywhere, cars, commerce, and cows, but my favorite thing is observing fashion,” Kirby says. Dakar is a city that blends traditional sensibilities with modernist design, all of which is showcased at Dakar Fashion Week. This year will be no different. It’s a perfect time to experience “how Senegalese creatives are pushing the possibilities of Senegalese and African fashion forward.”
Les Deux Exhibition(Dec 4 – 6)
In early December, Kirby’s Galerie36 will present a new solo exhibition by Senegalese artist Ibrahima Ndoye featuring 30 works created between 2024 and 2025. Kirby says the exhibition will open “With a special opening program on December 4 with food, spoken word performances, and remarks by the artist.”
Other Art and Culture Events To Check Out:
Accra Cultural Week (Oct 30 – Nov 3rd)
A multiday art and culture experience featuring performances, exhibitions, talks, tours, and gatherings curated by Gallery 1957
S16 Film Festival(Dec 1 -5)
One of Nigeria’s most anticipated film festivals dedicated to the screenings and conversations around unconventional and boundary-breaking films is hosting its fifth edition with the theme, “Let There Be Light”. The festival is known for platform-independent filmmakers from across the continent
Lagos Photo Festival 2025(Opens Oct 25)
This year’s Lagos Photo Festival brings together a range of artists from Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, and other parts of the continent. The works will engage with the theme of Incarceration, exploring the power of photography as a reproduction of lived violence
