AFROSCOPE ™

The INTRA Research project „Spinning Stories - Living Archives“ has concluded, the final report has been written, and ideas for its continuation are becoming increasingly concrete. At this point, I would like to look back once more on the opening of the Austrian Cultural Forum and the opening of the Spinning Stories exhibition at Nubuke Centre in Accra and thank all the helping hands that worked behind the scenes (a few of them very hidden) until the very last moment. Many thanks @afroscope and thank you also to the team @nubuke_foundation @acf_accra and @austriainghana who all contributed their full support to the final event. I am looking forward to further collaborations in the future. Photo credits: ÖB Accra / Isaac Gyamfi Photos 5/6: @tanja_prusnik Photo 13: @christianautengruber Karin Altmann @fabric.of.life and Nana Opoku @afroscope @spinningstories.livingarchives #spinningstories #exhibition #accra #ghana #nubukefoundation

Continuity and Innovation of a Vanishing Textile Heritage A final glimpse into the exhibition SPINNING STORIES @nubuke_foundation in Accra / Ghana. Karin Altmann @fabric.of.life and Nana Opoku @afroscope @spinningstories.livingarchives #spinningstories #vanishingknowledge #artsbasedresearch #nubukefoundation #spinningstorieslivingarchives

KNOWLEDGE IN MATERIAL The exhibition @nubuke_foundation marks the conclusion of the INTRA project SPINNING STORIES – LIVING ARCHIVES, Continuity and Innovation of a Vanishing Textile Heritage at the University of Applied Arts Vienna. Karin Altmann @fabric.of.life and Nana Opoku @afroscope @spinningstories.livingarchives #spinningstories #materialknowledge #cotton #flax #nubukefoundation

Continuity and Innovation of a Vanishing Textile Heritage There is one week left to experience the exhibition SPINNING STORIES, on view @nubuke_foundation in Accra. The exhibition marks the conclusion of the INTRA project SPINNING STORIES – LIVING ARCHIVES, Continuity and Innovation of a Vanishing Textile Heritage at the University of Applied Arts Vienna. Storytelling functions as a method of knowledge production in which memories, life stories and materialities are spun together, interwoven and shared, and remain in motion even after the project has ended. Have an inspiring weekend! Karin Altmann @fabric.of.life and Nana Opoku @afroscope @spinningstories.livingarchives #spinningstories #handspinning #vanishingknowledge #ghana #nubukefoundation

Join us for an exhibition by Karin Altmann and AFROSCOPE exploring women’s spinning traditions across Ghana and Austria. Through lived narratives and embodied knowledge, the project reflects on how disappearing textile practices can become a living archive — and how women’s work, often unrecognized, continues to shape cultural memory. On view at Nubuke Foundation
26 February – 28 March 2026 We look forward to welcoming you.

// Contested Desires Constructive Dialogues // Tapestry of Encrypted Memories (Dirty Laundry) è il titolo dell’opera che Isaac Nana Opoku ha realizzato in occasione della sua residenza a cura di D6: Culture in Transit al Great North Museum: Hancock per il progetto Contested Desires Constructive Dialogues che, attraverso il lavoro di 22 artisti provenienti da tutto il mondo, invita a riflettere sull’eredità problematica del colonialismo europeo conservata nelle collezioni museali e rappresentata nei siti storici e negli spazi pubblici. Un’opera tessile multidimensionale che funge sia da artefatto che da archivio: i quadrati di carta piegata contengono riflessioni scritte a mano e schizzi che catturano momenti di riflessione, disagio e rivelazione vissuti durante l’esplorazione delle collezioni coloniali del Museo della Civiltà a Roma. Immagini 1, 4, 6 di Amelia Read Immagini 2, 3, 5 di Matt Denham @contesteddesires : Constructive Dialogues è finanziato dal programma @creative.eu dell’Unione Europea ed è realizzato in collaborazione con: @d6_eu_ , @Xarkis , @labonnebcn , @herengracht401 , @muhnac , @museodellecivilta , @proprogressione , @bjcem_aisbl , @museoegizio , @creativecourt._ , La Fabrique Art Studio. Partner associati: @d6culture , @larnaka2030 , @cyprusuniversitytechnology , @fondazionesbac , @casa_arabe . In collaborazione con: @nubuke_foundation , @museodelamemoria , RMCG - @uniofleicester

Where art meets fabric, a dream takes shape. The Christie Brown x @afroscope print brings together two worlds; couture and canvas, in a surreal exploration of heritage, identity and imagination. . Explore #CBFW25, available online and in-store at The Residence.

SHIFTED #19: On Afroscope’s Living Technology and the Ancestral Code of Speculative Futures What if the most advanced technology wasn’t built by humans, but was human? In 'Living Technology', @afroscope reframes the human body as a sacred, ancestral machine. Rooted in spiritual memory and postcolonial resistance, the work pulses with the unseen: imagination, ritual, and the blurred line between coding and dreaming. “We as human beings are some of the most advanced pieces of technology in the universe... not just in the cold, mechanistic sense, but as expressions of awe,” says @afroscope In this new conversation, we explore: - How colonially programmed norms erase indigenous knowledge - Why imagination is the ultimate technology - The body as archive and interface - What kind of futures emerge when art remembers 🌐 Part of the online exhibition Down the Silicon Meadow, co-curated with @office_impart and Blueshift, on common.garden Read the full interview: /p/shifted-19-on-afroscopes-living-technology

And so we reach the closing day of @contesteddesires at the @gnm_hancock . What a great run it’s been. 🌺 The biggest of thanks to the artists for this journey - sharing their incredible practice, getting to know our region and community, and presenting work that has opened minds to question Europe’s colonial past and what it means today. ✨ We can’t wait for where this will take us! Watch this space. 🌹 Images: works by @elguendelman , @efuasutherland , Isaac Nana Opoku (@ARFROSCOPE ), @andreas_mallouris , @marialuigiagioffre , @paul_stan_nataraj and @patrick_ziza Photos by @ameliajread Thanks to support from the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union, @heritagefunduk , @aceagrams , @paulhamlynfoundation and the Community Foundation North East and Newcastle City Council’s Culture Investment Fund Great North Museum: Hancock, Newcastle University, Sangini, South Tyneside Cultural Partnership, Tyne Coast College, North East of England African and Caribbean Community Association, Tyne Theatre & Opera House. #ContestedDesires #ArtForChange #DecolonizeCulture #Colonialism #CreativeEurope #ArtAndHeritage #DecolonialArt #CulturalDialogue

Discover @afroscope ’s Tapestry of Encrypted Memories (Dirty Laundry) at the @contesteddesires exhibition. Afroscope’s textile weaves together physical and digital elements to create a rich tapestry of narrative, reflection and imagination. The interconnected squares are meticulously crafted from folded paper containing handwritten reflections and sketches - capturing moments of insight, discomfort and revelation during their time exploring the colonial collections at the @museodellecivilta in Rome. ✨There are just a few days left to visit - closing on 29 July. ✨ @gnm_hancock , Newcastle, NE2 4PT Sat: 10am-4pm, Sun: 11am-4pm, weekdays: 10am-5pm. The artists explore different perspectives of colonialism, asking questions about its impact today and whose stories we hear. Images: Isaac Nana Opoku (AFROSCOPE), Tapestry of Encrypted Memories (Dirty Laundry. Photos: Amelia Read Thanks to support from the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union, @heritagefunduk , @aceagrams , @paulhamlynfoundation and the @communityfoundationnortheast and @newcastlecouncil 's Culture Investment Fund @gnm_hancock , @newcastleuni , @sanginiafriend , South Tyneside Cultural Partnership, Tyne Coast College, North East of England African and Caribbean Community Association, @tyneoperahouse . @eccom_it @xarkis__ @museodellecivilta @interarts.foundation @bjcem_aisbl @herengracht401 @proprogressione @muhnac @labonnebcn @museoegizio @creativecourt._ @cyprusuniversitytechnology @d6_eu_ @larnaka2030 , @uniofleicester @nubuke_foundation @museodelamemoria #ContestedDesires #Decolonization

We warmly welcome Isaac Nana Opoku - @afroscope - to Newcastle for the @contesteddesires residency and exhibition. Influenced by weaving and indigenously produced fabrics, Nana is exploring the impact of colonial heritage on contemporary artisanal culture and textile production, including the erasure of indigenous textile practices through colonisation. During their residency, Nana is creating a multidimensional textile piece that serves as both artefact and archive. In Nana’s words: ‘This textile transcends conventional boundaries, weaving together physical and digital elements to create a rich tapestry of narrative, reflection and imagination … It is a tactile manifestation of memory reclamation and cultural restoration.’ We invite you to experience Nana’s work during the Contested Desires programme… *Conference - Let’s Talk about Decolonisation, with artists panel* 📍@theword_uk , National Centre for the Written Word, South Shields, NE33 1JF 📆 Thurs 17 July, 9.30am-5.30pm 🔗 Book your free place via the link in our bio *Exhibition* 📍@gnm_hancock , Newcastle, NE2 4PT 📆 Preview: Weds 16 July, 5.30-8pm 🔗 RSVP via the link in our bio 📆 17 July - 29 July 2025 Isaac Nana Opoku, Odasani Ntoma, mixed media tapestry, 2023 Thanks to support from the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union, @heritagefunduk , @aceagrams , @paulhamlynfoundation and the @communityfoundationnortheast and @newcastlecouncil 's Culture Investment Fund @gnm_hancock , @newcastleuni , @sanginiafriend , South Tyneside Cultural Partnership, Tyne Coast College, North East of England African and Caribbean Community Association, @tyneoperahouse . @eccom_it @xarkis__ @museodellecivilta @interarts.foundation @bjcem_aisbl @herengracht401 @proprogressione @muhnac @labonnebcn @museoegizio @creativecourt._ @cyprusuniversitytechnology @d6_eu_ @larnaka2030 @uniofleicester @nubuke_foundation @museodelamemoria #ContestedDesires #ArtForChange #DecolonizeCulture #Europe #Colonialism #CreativeEurope #ArtAndHeritage #DecolonialArt #CulturalDialogue

Continuity and Innovation of a Vanishing Textile Heritage In/Tangible 2025 Installation @nubuke_foundation @nubuke_wa In this installation, Karin Altmann and AFROSCOPE (Isaac Nana Opoku) present cotton hand spindles from Upper West and Northern Ghana as both artifacts and storytellers. These objects embody the intersection of material culture and intangible heritage, standing as testament to generations of women whose skilled hands transformed raw fiber into the foundation of textile traditions. This installation represents a larger research initiative that positions textile practice as a form of embodied knowledge—a coded history recorded in gesture, rhythm, and material transformation. By preserving these "spinning narratives," the artists create an imaginary archive that transcends conventional boundaries: connecting past with future, craft with digital production, the material with the virtual. Karin Altmann @fabric.of.life and Nana Opoku @afroscope @spinningstories.livingarchives Photo credits @nubuke_foundation #spinning #spinningstories #spinningstorieslivingarchives #artsbasedresearch #karinaltmann #afroscope #intraproject #dieangewandte #textiles #handspinning #vanishingknowledge #heritage #livingarchive #textileheritage #textileart #ghana #woori2025