MANJU Journal

COVER REVEAL (2/3) : MANJU JOURNAL DEBUT FASHION ZINE IS OUT NOW ! . Manju Journal proudly presents the inaugural edition of its latest digital fashion zine. Our ‘HomeGrown’ Issue shot and produced in the vast expanse of Ghana’s Northern capital introduces a special exclusive editorial titled ‘Mangoes from Tamale’ lensed by the talented Lagos-based photographer Daniel Obasi. Spanning 48 pages, this new bite-size digi-zine experiments with new locational contexts to showcase sartorial creations from some leading African designers set against artist Ibrahim Mahama’s vast Redclay studio and the historically rich metropolis of Tamale. . Discover this beautiful project in our new debut zine for free: link in bio . Models Fulera & Akosua wear Duaba Serwa (@duabaserwa ) AKANE form dress . Creative Direction Richmond Orlando Mensah (@orlandofficialle ) Photography Daniel Obasi (@iamdanielobasi ) Styling Daniel Obasi & Uche Uba (@vcheuba ) Photo Assistant Daniel Kons (@danielkons ) Producer Mohammed Blakk (@mohammedblakk ) Lighting Assistant Noma Osula (@noma.o ) Assistant Producer Hussain Mustapha (@muxtapha_ ) Makeup Judah Odei (@judahsmakeover ) Models Alhassan Fulera (@alhassanfulera_ ) at EM (@em_models ) & Akosua Kwatema Attakorah (@akosuaattakorah ) at CAST (@castmodelmgmt ) Writer Nana Ama Owusu-Ansah (@nana.amaphoto ) Graphic Designer Jaya Modi (@jayamodidesign ) Hairstylist Kokoih Joyceline Zunuo (@nuo_kokoih ) Retoucher Kiran Owal (@kiran_owal ) Production & Creative Studio Manju Studio (@manju.studios ) . Profound thanks to Africa No Filter (@africanofilter ) for their unparalled support, Redclay Studio & The Savannah Centre for Contemporary Art. . #manjujournal #digitalzine #homegrownissue #Tamale #africanfashion #africanofilter #redclaystudio #issue1

HOMEGROWN ZINE (ISSUE 1) ! Our love letter to the rich metropolis of Tamale manifested in our debut digital fashion zine HOMEGROWN. A carousel of short stills to take you behind the scene into making this beautiful project shot on location at acclaimed artist Ibrahim Mahama’s Redclay studio, The Savannah Centre for Contemporary Arts and the vast streets of Ghana’s Northern Capital Tamale. . ‘The creation of this zine was a special one and we hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as we loved putting it together for you’ - Creative Director (@orlandofficialle ) . Discover our HOMEGROWN zine here or link in bio : /manjujournal/docs/manju_journal_digital_issue_1 . Special thank you to all our collaborators, designers and contributors. Africa No Filter (@africanofilter ) for the support, (@redclay_studio ) & (@sccatamale ) for hosting us in your institution. . CREATIVE TEAM : (@iamdanielobasi ), (@vcheuba ), (@danielkons ), (@mohammedblakk ), (@noma.o ), (@muxtapha__ ), (@judahsmakeover_ ), (@nana.amaphoto ), (@jayamodidesign ), (@nuo_kokoih ), (@kiran_owal ), (@manju.studios ), (@akosuaattakorah ), (@sandahofficial ), (@alhassanfulera_ ), (@fuseiniamidu_57 ), (@suglo120 ), (@__abdulrakib ) . Designers (@orangecultureng ), (@duabaserwa ), (@ajabeng.gh ), (@vicnateng ), (@christiebrowngh ), (@legacy.world ), (@rania_odaymat ), (@lisafolawiyo_studio ), (@emmykasbit ) . #manjujournal #digitalzine #homegrownissue #Tamale #africanfashion #africanofilter #redclaystudio #issue1 #OrangeCulture #sccatamale #lisafolawiyo #christiebrown #ajabeng #vicnate #duabaserwa

In a special exclusive editorial titled ‘Mangoes from Tamale’ taken from our debut fashion zine ‘HOMEGROWN’ and lensed by the Lagos-based photographer Daniel Obasi (@iamdanielobasi ), we experiments with new locational contexts to showcase sartorial creations from some leading African designers set against artist Ibrahim Mahama’s vast Redclay studio and The Savannah Centre for Contemporary Art. . Discover this beautiful project in our new debut zine for free: link in bio . Creative Direction Richmond Orlando Mensah (@orlandofficialle ) Photography Daniel Obasi Styling Daniel Obasi & Uche Uba (@vcheuba ) Photo Assistant Daniel Kons (@danielkons ) Producer Mohammed Blakk (@mohammedblakk ) Lighting Assistant Noma Osula (@noma.o ) Assistant Producer Hussain Mustapha (@muxtapha_ ) Makeup Judah Odei (@judahsmakeover ) Writer Nana Ama Owusu-Ansah (@nana.amaphoto ) Graphic Designer Jaya Modi (@jayamodidesign ) Hairstylist Kokoih Joyceline Zunuo (@nuo_kokoih ) Retoucher Kiran Owal (@kiran_owal ) Production & Creative Studio Manju Studio (@manju.studios ) . Image 1 Models Fulera Alhassan (@alhassanfulera_ ) & Akosua (@akosuaattakorah ) wear (@duabaserwa ) Image 2 Sandah (@sandahofficial ) wears (@orangecultureng ) Image 3 Akosua and Fulera wear (@vicnateng ) Image 4 Models Fulera Alhassan (@alhassanfulera_ ) & Akosua (@akosuaattakorah ) wear (@duabaserwa ) Image 5 Akosua wears (@christiebrowngh ) and Rania Odaymat (@rania_odaymat ) neckpiece Image 6 Model Fuseini (@fuseiniamidu_57 ) wears Lisa Folawiyo (@lisafolawiyo_studio ) . Profound thanks to Africa No Filter (@africanofilter ) for their unparalled support . #manjujournal #digitalzine #homegrownissue #Tamale #africanfashion #africanofilter #redclaystudio #issue1 #OrangeCulture #christiebrown #vicnate

A weekend special on the works of Koto Bolofo (@kotobolofo ) spanning decades of image-making across photography and film. Bolofo’s practice has long existed outside easy categorisation; documenting apartheid and its aftermath without reducing Africa to spectacle, identity or resistance alone. A body of work marked by precision, restraint and an enduring commitment to narrative. Unflinchingly true to the voodoo of analogue photography, South African-born, London-based Bolofo, famed for his award-winning fashion photography and films has strived to create an independent body of timeless photography, for his own pleasure. . All images from the series Soweto Series, The Lesotho Horse Riders, Sibusiso Mhbele and His Fish Helicopter . #manjujournal #Kotobolofo #photography #SouthAfrica #London

Ayomide Okanlawon’s new solo show ‘The Shape of A Dream Is Bigger Than A Frame’ unfolds in Lagos as a dreamy, colour-drenched reflection on contemporary Nigerian life. Presented in collaboration with Lianna Foundation, the exhibition brings together new works alongside selected earlier images, tracing the evolution of Okanlawon’s (@phinnygram ) visual language through saturated palettes, cinematic contrasts, and layered portraiture. . Moving between fashion image-making and visual storytelling, the works draw from the pulse of Lagos while reflecting the wider influence of Nigerian and global pop culture. Across the series, youth, style, intimacy, and imagination converge in compositions that feel both nostalgic and quietly surreal. . The show is now on view at Lianna Foundation (@lianna_fg ), Flat 13, 18 Cooper Road, Ikoyi, Lagos until May 17, 2026. All images courtesy of the artist . #manjujournal #Lagos #africanphotgraphy #AyomideOkanlawon #Nigeria

Venice Art Biennale Takeover ! Our next stop is Ghanaian artist Amoako Boafo’s (@amoakoboafo ) first solo exhibition in Italy entitled ‘It Doesn’t Have To Always Make Sense’ which draws inspiration from the Renaissance atmosphere of Museo di Palazzo Grimani (@museopalazzogrimani ), featuring a series of new and recent works, many of which directly reference the unique architecture and historical context of the site, which is part of the Musei archeologici nazionali di Venezia e della Laguna. . Here, writer & curator Folasade Ologundudu (@sadeolo ) goes up close with the artist, known for his expressive portraits of Black subjects and his signature technique of applying paint with his fingers. Presented in collaboration with Gagosian (@gagosian ), these compelling pieces, which continue Boafo’s exploration of identity and style, are installed on the second floor of the palazzo, establishing a dialogue between contemporary Black representation and the enduring legacy of Venetian artistic masterworks. . The show is on view until November 22, 2026 . #manjujournal #AmoakoBoafo #VeniceArtBiennale #VenicwBiennale #blackartist

Venice Art Biennale Takeover ! Visual activist Zanele Muholi (@muholizanele ) brings a powerful independent presence to the Venice Biennale with the series ‘Faces and Phases 20’ presented by Southern Guild Gallery (@southernguildgallery ). The exhibition marks two decades of her groundbreaking photographic series, one of the most significant ongoing visual archives of Black LGBTQIA+ lives worldwide. . Folasade Ologundudu (@sadeolo ) closely examines over 200 of the artist’s black-and-white portraits selected from 2006 to the present as the exhibition foregrounds the cumulative scale of Faces and Phases as a living document. . Now on view at the residence of Trisja Malisoff and Tony Podesta in the Castello district, the exhibition runs until 10 May. Conceived as an off-site activation, it brings a potent South African artistic presence to the Biennale at a moment when the official South African Pavilion has been withdrawn. . #manjujournal #ZaneleMuholi #VeniceArtBiennale #VeniceBiennale #FacesandPhases20 (@lightworkcompany )

Venice Art Biennale Takeover ! Folasade Ologundudu (@sadeolo ) heads to artist Ibrahim Mahama’s (@ibrahimmahama3 ) solo exhibition ‘A Shea Garden’, where clay vessels traditionally used for storing shea in Ghana are reimagined through Murano glass. . Presented by Galleria Barovier&Toso (@galleriabaroviertoso ) in collaboration with A Palazzo Gallery (@apalazzogallery ), the exhibition brings Mahama’s material-driven practice into dialogue with the centuries-old tradition of Murano glassmaking. At its centre are vernacular clay vessels from northern Ghana, objects rooted in agricultural and domestic life, transformed into luminous glass forms that carry histories of labour, utility and cultural memory. . The exhibition also draws connections between Mahama’s long-standing exploration of trade, labour and material circulation and the fragile legacy of Murano glassmaking. Both are shaped by histories of global exchange and sustained through generational knowledge, while confronting the pressures of economic and industrial change. . Now on view at Galleria Barovier&Toso pop-up, Rio Terà della Carità 1046, Dorsoduro, until July 18, 2026. (@lightworkcompany ) . #manjujournal #IbrahimMahama #ASheaGarden #VeniceBiennale #VeniceArtBiennale

This week in Venice, the late Koyo Kouoh’s curatorial vision for the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia comes into full view through In Minor Keys, a theme developed over recent years that reflects on slowness, listening, repair, and collective experience amid a time of global fatigue. Born in Douala and raised in Switzerland, Kouoh founded RAW Material Company in Dakar in 2008 as a space for research, exhibition, and critical discourse after first beginning her career in finance. From 2019, as Executive Director and Chief Curator of Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa, she helped reposition the institution within wider conversations around representation, access, and contemporary African art. MANJU Journal heads to Venice this week with exclusive previews and highlights from the Biennale. Through a curated lens, New York–based curator, writer, and podcast creator Folasade Ologundudu (@sadeolo ) will share key moments and programme insights from selected pavilions across Africa and its diaspora, tracing the conversations and artistic practices shaping this year’s edition. Kouoh’s historic appointment as the first African woman to curate the Biennale remains a defining moment in contemporary curatorial practice. Following her passing, her vision is being carried forward by the curatorial team closely associated with her: Rashi Saltie, Gabe Beckhurst Feijoo, Marie-Hélène Pereira, Siddhartha Mitter, and Rory Tsapayi. . Portrait by Trevor Stuurman (@trevor_stuurman ) . #manjujournal #koyokouoh #venicebiennale #inminorkeys #labiennaledivenezia

MANJU Journal heads to Venice this week for a special takeover in collaboration with Folasade Ologundudu (@sadeolo ), presenting exclusive previews and highlights from the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Across a curated lens, we will share key moments and programme insights from selected exhibitions & pavilions across Africa and its diaspora, tracing the conversations, gestures, and practices shaping this year’s edition in Venice. . Folasade Ologundudu is a curator, podcast creator, and writer based in New York whose practice seeks to uncover ideas related to the universal human condition. She has written art criticism, profiles, interviews, and essays for Vogue, Essence, Artforum, ARTnews, Cultured Magazine, and Frieze. As founder of Light Work (@lightworkcompany ), a US-based creative platform operating at the intersection of art, education, and culture, she collaborates with artists, curators, academics, and cultural practitioners through dialogue that engages contemporary art, cultural production, and the shifting conditions of our time. . #InMinorKeys, shaped under the visionary and profoundly influential curatorial direction of the late Koyo Kouoh, marks a significant moment for African representation. This year’s edition brings together 12 national pavilions from across the continent, including Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, the Republic of Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Morocco, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. Four of these countries participate for the first time, signalling a meaningful shift in the visibility and presence of African perspectives within the Biennale, and underscoring Kouoh’s enduring legacy in expanding and reimagining the contours of global contemporary art discourse. . The 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia is on view from May 9 to November 22, 2026. . #LaBiennaleDiVenezia #BiennaleArte #manjujournal #venicebiennale

Ahead of the opening of the Venice Biennale next week, artist Ibrahim Mahama (@ibrahimmahama3 ) presents a special project, ‘A Shea Garden’, bringing elements of the artist’s material-driven practice into dialogue with the tradition of Murano glassmaking, presented by Galleria Barovier&Toso in collaboration with A Palazzo Gallery. . In A Shea Garden, Mahama extends this approach through a new engagement with Murano glass. Central to the exhibition are traditional clay vessels from northern Ghana, objects embedded in everyday agricultural life, used for storing grain or feeding poultry. These vessels, shaped by practical ingenuity and long-standing cultural practices, become the basis for a material transformation. . The exhibition also draws connections between Mahama’s exploration of trade and labour and the fragile tradition of Murano glassmaking. Both are shaped by histories of global exchange and sustained by generational knowledge, yet face ongoing pressures from economic and industrial change. The show is on view from Monday 4 May 2026 until 18 July 2026 at (@galleriabaroviertoso )’s popup space. Rio Della Carità 1046, 30123 Dorsoduro, Venice Vaporetto stop: Accademia. (@apalazzogallery ) . Image 1, 3 & 6: Ernest Ofori Sackitey (@officially_sackitey ). Courtesy Redclay Studio (@redclay_studio ) Image 2, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11: Record Studio (@record_studio_ ) Image 4: Francesco Allegretto . #manjujournal #IbrahimMahama #VeniceBiennale #InMinorKeys #InASheaGarden

All hail Okra (@okrajournal ), the new media platform and digital magazine dedicated to investigating the cultural histories of design and architecture. Through essays, research and participatory programming, it looks beyond the surface of objects to consider how design takes shape in everyday life. Launched in January, the inaugural issue ‘Afro European’, brings together a considered mix of voices working across disciplines. Essays, conversations and visual contributions approach objects and environments as sites of knowledge; where diaspora, more and power take material form. . ‘With the first issue, we wanted to acknowledge the absence of Afro-European perspectives and create space that reflect the lived realities of Black creatives working across European contexts’, founders Charlene Austin (@charleneaustin ) and Keesje Heldoorn (@keesjeheldoorn ) tells Manju. . Read the full interview on manjujournal.com/link in bio Text by Richmond Orlando Mensah (@orlandofficialle ) . Image 1: Okra. Courtesy of Okra Journal Image 2: Stranger Notes. Courtesy Giles Tettey Nartey (@gilestetteynartey ) Image 3: Nmbello Studio (@nmbello1 ) / (@nmbello_studio ) Image 4: Courtesy of Sade Linda Ekwedike (@hellxsade ) Image 5: Launch of Okra. Image courtesy of Yeray Sabandar (@yeraysabandar ) Image 6: Andu Masebo (@andumasebo ), photography Christian Cassiel (@christiancassiel ) Image 7: Courtesy of Sucking Salt (@sucking.salt ) Image 8: Courtesy of Lilly Alexandra (@lillyalexxandra ) Image 9: Courtesy of Charles O.Job (@charles.o.job ) Image 10: Hall Haus (@hall.haus ). Photography Audrey Mballa (@audreyallday ) . #manjujournal #OkraJournal #architecture #design #afroeuropean