Ibrahim Mahama

Food Distribution Corporation

Through his monumental installations, consisting of coarse jute bags, Ibrahim Mahama (* 1987) focuses attention on the flow of commodities and conditions of production in his homeland of Ghana. Furnished with markings related to their varied forms of use, the jute bags are a symbolic, even archaeological material in relation to the circulation of raw materials in local and international contexts. Just as his materials testify to their multifarious utilizations, the way in which Mahama assembles his works – which are often presented in public spaces – reflects processes of economic transformation. The artist commissions Ghanaian migrant laborers to stitch together his enormous draperies, thereby incorporating his work into socioeconomic processes of labor, commerce, and migration.

We were allowed to accompany the documenta 14 artsist during the set up of his artist room (crator: Dr. Susanne Meyer-Büser) at K21 in Düsseldorf in 2016.