“Re-Painting the Red” – A project in Kumasi

Throughout Ghana, in big cities and small villages, corporations are usurping the exterior walls of homes, businesses, and community spaces for the purposes of advertising. This was something that was immediately apparent to me as I began traveling north, through Kumasi and up into Tamale and Bolgatanga.

As a park of the Kurio Kiosk Project during The Kumasi Symposium at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, collaborators and I planned an intervention that would subvert corporate advertising that gives very little back to the community. Statement and photos below:

“Re-Painting the Red”

Charlie Michaels

Rex Akinruntan

Kojo Apori

Ralista Diana Debrah

With permission from Faisal and his family who willingly let us re-paint their home in Kumasi. Photo documentation by Jack Azor

This project seeks to draw attention to a form of corporate advertising in Ghana.

The practice of branding signifies ownership of the branded object, in this case by corporations that choose to use the walls of family living spaces as cheap advertising. The streetscape of many Ghanaian cities and villages is quickly changing as the number of branded homes grows. Public spaces that once belonged to local communities and families are now being claimed and privatized by the bright, bold, and distracting logos of international corporations. These methods of advertising take advantage of the economic and social status of individuals in Ghanaian communities, as they are commonly given little or nothing in return. Often, only unfulfilled promises of money, mobile phones, and t-shirts are offered in exchange.

After conducting interviews and obtaining permission from the resident of a branded home in Kumasi, the artists painted over the advertisements covering the walls. The home was then stenciled with a series of Adinkra symbols, Ghanaian proverbial symbols that are often seen decorating buildings, fabrics, and vehicles. The arrangement of the Adinkra mimics the design of the corporate logo but subverts it, symbolizing the re-claiming of the home by local culture and the transferring of the space back into the hands of the community.

This project was included in an exhibition, Kumasi Crossroads: Global Kiosk Affairs, at the KNUST museum during August 2009.