John Akomfrah is a hugely respected artist and filmmaker, whose works are characterised by their investigations into memory, post-colonialism, temporality and aesthetics and often explore the experiences of migrant diasporas globally. His first film, Handsworth Songs (1986) explored events surrounding the 1985 riots in Birmingham and London through a charged combination of archive footage, still photos, newly shot material and newsreel. The film won several international prizes, exhibiting in both the gallery and broadcast arena and established a multi-layered visual style that has become a recognisable motif of Akomfrah’s practice.
His latest work Listening All Night to the Rain represented Great Britain at the 60th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia and was his most ambitious project to date. Drawing its title from 11th century Chinese writer and artist Su Dongpo’s poetry, which explores the transitory nature of life during a period of political exile and organised into a series of song-like movements or ‘cantos’, it brought together eight interlocking and overlapping multimedia and sound installations into a single immersive environment that told stories of migrant diasporas in Britain.
Akomfrah’s work has been exhibited publically at major museums and galleries, both nationally and internationally.