Vanessa Van Obberghen
Tracing Cheikh Anta Diop , 2014
In her research into Cheikh Anta Diop, one of the founders of Pan-Africanism, Vanessa Van Obberghen puts the emphasis on the various roles he fulfilled: scientist, philosopher, anthropologist, linguist and politician. With Tracing Cheikh Anta Diop, the artist translates her own personal vision of this documentary history into an image. Inspired by Cheikh Anta Diop's fascination for genetics and DNA, she uses an Asiatic model to address stereotypical thinking with regards to Africa's post-colonial history.