Goddy Leye
As part of Africa Beyond Visual Arts Residencies Goddy Leye will be working in association with Southbank Centre during summer 2008.
Encompassing video, installation and performance, Goddy Leye’s practice revolves around notions of memory, both individual and collective, and explorations beneath the surface of dominant and supposedly authoritative histories and representations. Informed by a critical understanding of Negritude philosophy, Leye seeks to unravel historical and contemporary representations of Africa, and his internationalist outlook has led to projects aimed at cross-cultural exchange. An ongoing project entitled United Chiefdom of Africa centres around a fictitious state created by the artist in 2001, whose flag he carries all over the world.
Leye lives and works in Douala, Cameroon. He spent two years at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam (2001-02), and has participated in several major international exhibitions including Dak’Art 2000, South Meets West (Accra, 1999 and Berne, 2000), the Sao Paulo Biennial (2002) and Africa Remix at The Hayward in 2005 and its international tour.
The Africa Beyond Visual Arts Residencies have been developed through a partnership between Africa Beyond and Gasworks International Residency Programme, and in association with Southbank Centre, The Photographers’ Gallery and Institute of International Visual Arts. The Residencies are funded by Arts Council England.
