AFRIKANIZM ART PLATFORM – “AFRICAN ART CAN AND MUST HAVE A PLACE IN THE WORLD ART STAGE”

Realizing that the lack of support and the weak presence of promoters considerably reduces the opportunities for “incredible artists who cannot effectively promote their work and, consequently, capitalize on it and have a professional carrier,” Laura Leal and João Boavida decided to create Afrikanizm, “a platform for the promotion and sale of Art by contemporary African artists” aimed at giving them a voice and showing their talent to the rest of the world through digital transformation. “Our goal is to show that African Art can and should have a place in the world Art stage, while actively participating in the promotion of culture in Angola,” say the two founders.

Laura Leal and João Boavida decided to create Afrikanizm, “a platform for the promotion and sale of Art by contemporary African artists” aimed at giving them a voice and showing their talent to the rest of the world through digital transformation.

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Interestingly, neither of them has an art background, “just a lot of passion”, they confess. Laura likes art that has a story behind it, without having a pre-defined style, while João prefers a neo-expressionist and urban style, “a bit of the Basquiat and Vhils universe, which can already be seen in some young African talents. Due to his work in marketing and the projects he was involved in, João contacted some artists and galleries in an experience that allowed him to identify the need to create alternatives for artistic work to be disseminated and valued, within Angola and beyond its borders.

They created, from scratch, a platform that operates on three different levels: online, with the sale of art through e-commerce on the website; an agency, where they enhance the talent, working with institutions, galleries and private companies to create initiatives that allow the promotion of artists; and a private channel, where they work very closely with a base of clients and art investors in Angola and the rest of the world.

Currently, they deal in four categories of works – painting, photography, collage and digital – from artists who find in Afrikanizm “the possibility to sell their works, without any binding contract and with one of the lowest commissions in the market, when compared to other players,” they say. Added to this advantage are flexibility and non-exclusivity, which allow artists to explore various opportunities to build their careers.
Selected through a scouting process, based mainly on intense research on the Internet and social networks, through the history of exhibitions in galleries, partners and other events, they trace the background of each artist, which allows a selection based on international quality parameters and the offer of the diversity that the final client desires. They then come into direct contact with the artists to whom they explain in detail the purpose of the platform and its benefits. “It has been a super rewarding process, considering the vote of confidence we have received,” they say. In a short period of time they have built a base of more than 45 artists representing eight African countries – Angola, South Africa, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, Egypt, Ghana and Kenya – mostly Angolans and Nigerians.

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