Watch our reel from the show!

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Watch our reel from the show! 〰️

Early this month, the first fully digital Africa and the Diaspora exhibition in the United States opened its doors to visitors in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Curated by Jessica Deutsch for The NFT Gallery, How High the Moon brings together artwork by African artists who celebrate the transformative impact and complexity of their culture while exploring intrinsic values to be shared.

How High the Moon takes its name from Ella Fitzgerald’s 1947 song, which was the first jazz recording to sell over a million copies — named after a significant song in bringing jazz to the mainstream, the exhibition is hinting at the possibility of digital art and NFTs breaking down barriers and making African art more accessible to a wider audience.

The exhibition features 14 digital and analog artists from Africa — some based in the Diaspora, the artists celebrate the rich culture of Africa through their art while exploring relationships within the complex heritage. African societies, landscapes, and beliefs find space for creative expression and appreciation within the gallery’s walls, to be carried out into the world.

“They dream of finding that which constitutes home, where they can connect with the spirits of old and commune with the Cosmos. Animals and beasts with magical powers are restored to their righteous place in this landscape. Women are goddesses, in tune with their femininity, reveling in their beauty and independent of Man.”

— excerpt from the exhibition catalogue

Here’s more about the featured artists:

Adesola Yusuf, better known as Arclight in the digital arts world, is a multidimensional artist based in Lagos, Nigeria. He draws inspirations from his memories of growing up in Lagos where he was constrained by poverty, police brutality, and a lack of academic opportunities. Yet, he presents these memories along with themes of self-love and self-awareness as a coping mechanism against all the sociopolitical issues. He holds a degree in graphic design and is inspired by baroque and rococo movements, as well as minimalism and pop.

Also featured in 10 Digital Artists: African artists you should know

AFROSCOPE is an award-winning artist and social entrepreneur from Ghana. He creates work that stimulates afro-consciousness, self-efficacy, and mindfulness with the hopes of decolonizing imagination to make the world a “cooler place to be.”

Osinachi is a self-taught digital artist based in Lagos. Being the first crypto artist from Africa, he was named one of the 100 Most Influential Africans for 2022 by New African Magazine. His art has led to conversations around NFTs and how they speak to a larger humanity. Osinachi creates his artwork using Microsoft Word and mirrors his personal experiences through a unique visual language.

Osinachi’s work has also been featured in A Digital Transcendence: The Intersection of Art and Tech

Delphine Diallo is a fine art photographer who has observed photography’s traditional gaze on women’s bodies — the artist made it her mission to become a key actor in the deconstruction of its sexist and racist legacy. Her visual style of “gazing back” empowers and celebrates herself as well as the black women who would become her protagonists and heroines. Beyond assumptions, she aims at inclusive and transnational representations —dreaming of a future matriarchal society.

Anthony Azekwoh is an author and contemporary artist who creates digital and traditional art as well as painting and sculpting. Based in Lagos, Nigeria, his art draws inspirations from African folklore and mythology — he tells stories of his country, transformation, and change.

Nygilia is a multidisciplinary artist who explores surreal and imaginative realms through her art. Her work draws inspirations from fantasy, gaming, and Afro-Caribbean worlds. Nygilia’s deep appreciation for the power of storytelling, culture, and visual art is reflected in her art — she depicts various perspectives and lifestyles using mixed media.

Justin Dingwall is a photographer from Johannesburg, who focuses both on commercial and contemporary photography. His art is an exploration of his own journey of self-discovery while calling for personal interpretations and emotional responses from viewers. Dingwall’s work isn’t bounded by language or culture, and aims to create meaningful experiences all around the globe.

Lethabo Huma is a digital artist from Pretoria, South Africa. She depicts flowers, clouds, sunsets, and gorgeous figures — mostly women — in her works, which feel like memories. In her words, her work is a reflection of her mental and emotional responses to experiences and serves as a visual diary, exploring her identity.

Also featured in 10 Digital Artists: African artists you should know

Young Kev is a multidisciplinary digital artist from Nairobi, Kenya. His art is recognizable for its surreal aesthetics, providing a momentary escape. He invites the viewer to depart from the world of thought into the realm of imagination and feeling, full of wonders and inspiration.

Lana Denina is a Montreal based digital artist and painter who explores human relationships, morphological diversity, and body movements through her art. She values timeless modernity, romance, and authenticity. Aiming to show the underrepresented faces and tell unheard stories of the black culture, the artist establishes what unites and divides us, as well as what we are and what we believe to be.

Fanuel Leul is an artist who creates Afrofuturistic digital art, based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He blends traditional elements with futuristic technology to create contrasting and harmonious compositions. His art uplifts, radiates joy, and gives a sense of peace to the viewers — he offers representations of Africa that’s free from commonly seen stereotypes, and instead celebrates its vibrant spirit.

Nearbound is a Zimbabwean artist currently based in Canada — “My work explores surreality, expressivity & an attention to emotion, and naivety as a means to describe the world around me, inside me, & I suspect in other people too – Colour, the expressiveness of line, & the brut treatment of form mark my work, which looks for a reality in the unreal, in Dreams, & Unplaces.”

Terence Ntsako Maluleke is a visual developer and fine artist from South Africa. His primary inspiration being the celebration of his community and beyond, the artist uses lines and geometric shapes in vibrant colors to depict interpretations of love, empathy, and virtue.

Vintagemozart is a Zimbabwean afro-surrealist and afrofuturist digital artist and curator. He creates pictorial realms and surreal digital collages inspired by mystical tales and African and Greek mythology. Vintagemozart dreams of a transcendent future — he conceptualizes “what if” realities, where children can become whatever their hearts desire, where mother nature is respected and protected, and where humans support one another and rise together.

Also featured in 10 Digital Artists: African artists you should know

“Mythical African gods are carved in marble, linking them to the Western practice of venerating and immortalizing their deities in stone. Balloons symbolize the hope that the artists can find meaning in the inexplicable and discover their true purpose and place in the world.”

— excerpt from the exhibition catalogue

Founded by Lynn Rosenberger, Andrin Pfister, and Lilien Hornung-Mary, The NFT Gallery is an accessible space for digital and NFT art for both collectors and creators. Combining cutting-edge technology with visionary artists, the gallery offers a curated selection of authentic and unique artworks to purchase online via the blockchain technology as well as in physical displays. In addition to exhibition programming, The NFT Gallery aims to help people better understand digital arts and NFTs and promote further participation in the field by providing educational resources and tools.

Also featured in Best Galleries to See Digital Art in NYC 2023

The exhibition is at The NFT Gallery in New York City — visit through October 21st and let us know your thoughts!