Press Release

The Cowrie Culture and The Mix Design Hub are pleased to announce Infinite Luminosity, its inaugural collaborative exhibition and the first solo exhibition by Michael Aboya in Accra, Ghana. The exhibition will comprise of video, poetry, and ten exquisitely composed photographs.

Aboya is best known for his extraordinary use of photography to create portraits that capture the radiance, joy, introspection, and hopefulness of mostly young adults and children in Ghana, his home. The photographs center the experience of black joy, love, beauty, play and poise often complemented by elements of nature unique to Accra, Ghana, including the coastline of the Atlantic Ocean, verdant landscapes, and rural, pastoral fields flooded in deep orange and golden rays from sunrises and sunsets across Ghana. The photographs challenge historical narratives about the lived experience of young Ghanaians and offers a counterpoint to narrow imaginings of contemporary life and creative expression in Ghana. There is an inherent sense of optimism reflected in Aboya’s photographs—the viewer is offered countless opportunities to see the beauty and brilliance in the images and recognize these qualities in them/her/him/self.

Infinite Luminosity, the title is meant to convey in words the essence of light and inner radiance that Aboya captures with ease in the subjects of his photographs. And yet, Aboya creates poetic streams of consciousness that read like inspirational messages to accompany each of his published photographs. In the text that accompanies 1 in a Billion, one of Aboya’s photographs featured in the exhibition, he writes, “As you can see, if you look through the windows down the stairway to your soul, you’ll realize you are one of a kind, one in a billion, one in a lifetime. That’s a beautiful gift, your uniqueness, your dreams, your reality, and your story. Amazing in every perfect imperfection” (@Aboya.8, Instagram).

For inquiries contact → show@thecowrieculture.com or info@themixgh.com

Binta Ata, Founder • The Mix Design Hub
Nish McCree, Founder • The COWRIE Culture