In a world where creative validation has long been centered in Western institutions, the last decade has marked a decisive shift — one led by African curators who are asserting authorship over the continent’s artistic narrative. No longer positioned at the margins, these cultural thinkers are shaping new systems of knowledge rooted in indigenous memory, community engagement, and contemporary innovation. By 2025, this movement reached a defining moment, visible in the rise of African-led biennial pavilions, appointment of African scholars to key museum roles, and the global recognition of African art, architecture, and design as intellectual forces rather than peripheral curiosities. This generation is not merely participating in global discourse — they are redirecting it.
The individuals featured on this inaugural list were selected through a deliberate and layered process that examined institutional leadership, exhibition programming, critical writing, and measurable impact across the 2024–2025 cycle. Consideration was given to curators shaping international platforms like the Venice Biennale, São Paulo Biennial, and 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair, as well as those building resilient ecosystems within Africa’s cultural capitals. Influence, in this context, extended beyond prestige — it included mentorship, infrastructural development, and the ability to create opportunities for emerging voices. This list highlights curators who bridge heritage and futurity, theory and practice, regional realities and global stage.
This first edition stands as a record of excellence and a marker of the current moment — not a definitive end, but a beginning. While only fifty names appear here, they belong to a much wider constellation of curators, archivists, writers, and cultural workers shaping Africa’s creative landscape. Many others are equally deserving, and future editions will expand as the field continues to evolve. By spotlighting curators, we draw attention to the unseen labour that makes cultural production possible — research, fundraising, negotiation, framing and care. A shared thread ties them together: a refusal to be silent custodians and a determination to define African aesthetics on their own terms.
1. Aïcha Diallo (Senegal)
Aïcha Diallo has solidified her reputation in 2025 as a leading voice in “Narrative Curation,” bridging her Senegalese and Canadian heritage to explore the intersections of language, history, and personal mythology. Her practice is deeply rooted in the idea of the “diasporic self,” using archival research to uncover stories often lost to migration and displacement. With an MFA from the Transart Institute in Berlin and a history of exhibiting at major nodes like SAVVY Contemporary, she has transitioned into a role where her curatorial eye influences how North American and African institutions discuss the Black Prairies and Afro-Atlantic connections.
In 2025, Diallo made major headlines with her exhibition Oscura, a year-long project running through Spring 2026 at Parc Galerie Stewart Hall, which examines folklore through visual silhouettes and shadows. She also co-curated Black Prairies at the Dunlop Art Gallery, a groundbreaking study of Black life in rural Canadian landscapes. These projects, along with her participation in the Afrotopos exhibition, highlight her as a essential curator for 2025 because she is successfully mapping the specific, often ignored, geographies of the African diaspora.
2. Aindrea Emelife (Nigeria)
Aindrea Emelife is arguably the most visible “star” curator of 2025, currently serving as the Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Museum of West African Art (MOWAA) in Benin City. Her work is characterized by a “Post-Colonial Optimism,” where she uses art history to build new, hopeful myths for the African continent rather than just focusing on trauma. Her influence has grown exponentially since her appointment at MOWAA, where she is helping build a world-class collection from the ground up in a city with profound historical weight.
The defining moment of her 2025 career was her role as the lead curator for the Nigeria Pavilion at the 60th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia. Titled Nigeria Imaginary, the exhibition featured global icons like Yinka Shonibare and Toyin Ojih Odutola and was hailed by critics as one of the most intellectually rigorous pavilions of the year. By bringing site-specific commissions back to Benin City after their Venice debut, Emelife is pioneering a “Circular Curatorial Model” that ensures international prestige directly benefits the local Nigerian ecosystem.
3. Khalil Morad El Ghilali and El Mehdi Belyasmine (Morocco)
Khalil Morad El Ghilali and El Mehdi Belyasmine are pioneering Moroccan architects who have emerged as leading voices in the intersection of ancestral craftsmanship and computational design. El Ghilali, a professor at the National School of Architecture in Marrakech and founder of Atelier BE, focuses his research on eco-responsible construction that addresses climate change and ecological resilience. El Mehdi Belyasmine, founder of Belyas.Co and an alumnus of the prestigious ETH Zurich, brings a high-tech perspective to the duo, specializing in how digital fabrication can enhance human experience and structural performance. Together, they represent a new guard of North African designers who refuse to view traditional techniques as stagnant folklore, instead treating them as a living body of knowledge. Their collaboration is defined by a shared commitment to “Natural Intelligence,” advocating for a bottom-up approach where architects build in direct conversation with local artisans and the land itself. By merging Belyasmine’s expertise in cutting-edge digital tools with El Ghilali’s deep field research into vernacular materials, they have created a unique architectural language that is both technically rigorous and culturally grounded. They are widely recognized for their ability to translate the complex textures of the Moroccan landscape into sophisticated, sustainable building systems. Their work emphasizes that the future of global architecture lies not in universal industrial materials, but in the localized, intelligent reuse of the earth beneath our feet.
In 2025, the duo achieved international acclaim for curating the Morocco Pavilion at the 19th International Architecture Biennale in Venice with their landmark project, Materiae Palimpsest. This immersive exhibition features 72 distinct columns constructed from a diverse inventory of 136 traditional Moroccan techniques and materials, including rammed earth, adobe, cob, and tadelakt. They are on this list specifically because they utilized the pavilion to debut a revolutionary post-tensioning system developed by El Ghilali, which allows earthen structures to be both scalable and earthquake-resistant. This technological leap was inspired by the 2023 Al Haouz earthquake, positioning their work as a vital response to real-world disaster recovery and climate adaptation. Their curation successfully bridges the gap between the physical and the digital, utilizing holograms of artisans at work to preserve the human gestures essential to construction. By presenting earth as a high-performance, renewable material rather than a relic of the past, they have challenged the global dominance of concrete and its environmental cost. The pavilion has been hailed by critics as a “living archive” and a manifesto for a circular economy in the built environment. Their leadership in 2025 has moved Morocco to the forefront of the global conversation on sustainable, heritage-led innovation. They continue to influence a new generation of architects to [re]think and [re]adapt local know-how for a resilient future. Their 2025 legacy is defined by this successful fusion of ancestral wisdom with the precision of modern engineering to solve contemporary social and ecological crises.
4. Azu Nwagbogu (Nigeria)
Azu Nwagbogu continues to be the “Godfather” of African photography and a fierce advocate for “Dig Where You Stand” (DWYS)—his philosophy of decolonization through local archival research. As the founder of the African Artists’ Foundation (AAF) and the LagosPhoto Festival, he has spent decades building the infrastructure that younger curators now inhabit. In 2025, his focus has shifted toward “The Museum as a Civic Space,” where art is used as a tool for public policy, restitution dialogue, and communal healing.
His most ambitious move in 2025 was the official transition of LagosPhoto into a city-wide Biennale, moving away from a single-venue festival to a decentralized network of exhibitions across Lagos. This year, he also oversaw the aftermath of his curated Benin Pavilion at Venice, ensuring the dialogue around repatriation remains a permanent fixture in global institutional policy. His “Explorer at Large” status with the National Geographic Society has allowed him to fund new forms of storytelling that merge satellite technology with indigenous knowledge.
5. Bibi Seck (Senegal)
Bibi Seck has solidified his reputation as one of the most intellectually rigorous and versatile designers in Africa, but his inclusion on this list is specifically defined by his profound impact as the lead curator for Design Week Lagos (DWL) 2025. Throughout the year, Seck shifted his focus from industrial product design to a sophisticated form of institutional curating, where he was tasked with articulating the festival’s core theme of “Industrializing the African Dream.” His curatorial approach in 2025 was marked by an uncompromising demand for functional excellence, moving the event away from purely decorative aesthetics toward a serious inquiry into mass production and local social impact. By selecting and positioning works that utilized recycled materials and sustainable manufacturing, Seck proved that high-end design can serve as a primary tool for continental economic empowerment. He acted as a bridge between high-level international attendees and local Nigerian workshops, facilitating a record-breaking influx of global buyers and manufacturers to the Lagos creative ecosystem. His curation was not merely about displaying beautiful objects; it was a curated argument for a “Made in Africa” industrial revolution that preserves cultural warmth. Seck’s influence was felt in every corner of the 2025 festival, from the layout of the “Tabouret” series installations to the rigorous intellectual framework of the keynote panels he moderated. He has been lauded for his unique ability to translate the chaotic, vibrant energy of West African urbanism into orderly, elegant design solutions that appeal to the global market. His leadership at DWL 2025 served as a blueprint for how African design weeks can move beyond exhibitions to become engines of structural policy change. Seck remains a vital architect of the African design economy’s infrastructure because he curates with the mind of an industrialist and the heart of a humanitarian.
In addition to his leadership at the festival, Seck’s 2025 achievements include the debut of his “Lumière de la Teranga” lighting collection at the Dakar Biennale, which further emphasized his mastery of cultural storytelling through technology. He spent a significant portion of 2025 consulting for regional governments on how to integrate human-centric design into national development strategies. Critics have noted that his work in 2025 avoided the usual tropes of “craft” to focus instead on the scalability of African creativity within a globalized supply chain. His curation at Design Week Lagos was particularly revolutionary for its “Design District” initiative, which transformed specific urban zones into living galleries of innovation. Seck’s influence has reached a point where he is seen as a global diplomat for African industrial design, represented in his keynote addresses at the UN Sustainable Design Forum. He continues to mentor a vast network of younger creators, teaching them that the true power of design lies in its ability to solve systemic problems rather than just filling rooms. His 2025 portfolio reflects a designer who is operating at the intersection of mass production and artisanal soul. As a curator, he successfully managed to decenter Western design standards, allowing the Lagos audience to envision a future defined by their own material history. The 2025 edition of DWL is widely considered his masterstroke, having elevated the festival to the status of a premier global design destination. Even as he scales his commercial production with French luxury houses, Seck’s primary focus remains the democratization of design for the everyday African citizen.
6. Boitumelo Makousu (South Africa)
Boitumelo Makousu is a leading figure in the “New Market Vanguard,” recognized for her ability to balance commercial success with rigorous conceptual depth. As a key force behind the RMB Latitudes Art Fair, she has redefined the “Art Fair” as an educational and curatorial experience rather than just a sales floor. Her work with the RMB CuratorLab is particularly significant in 2025, as she is actively training the next generation of African curators in the practicalities of the global art market.
In 2025, she curated the central program for the RMB Latitudes Art Fair at Shepstone Gardens, Johannesburg, focusing on “Diverse African Perspectives” and integrating digital marketplaces with physical installations. Her participation as a featured speaker and curator in global summits has highlighted her role as a bridge between South African grassroots talent and international collectors. She is deserving of this list because she is one of the few curators successfully navigating the “Commercial-Curatorial” divide in a way that prioritizes artist development.
7. Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung (Cameroon)
Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung remains one of the most intellectually influential curators on the planet, holding the dual mantle of Director at Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) in Berlin and the founder of SAVVY Contemporary. His curatorial style is “Sonic and Performative,” often incorporating soundscapes and rituals into exhibitions to challenge the visual-heavy traditions of Western museums. In 2025, he has been lauded for transforming HKW into a “House of World Cultures” that actually prioritizes the Global South in its programming.
2025 is a career-defining year for Ndikung as he serves as the Chief Curator of the 36th São Paulo Biennial in Brazil. This appointment is historic, as he brings his “Tremblements” (tremblings) philosophy to one of the world’s oldest biennials, exploring how art can seismographically record socioeconomic and environmental shifts. His leadership in São Paulo, combined with his ongoing “Cultures of Survival” series in Berlin, confirms his status as the primary architect of global African-led discourse.
8. Brice Arsène Yonkeu (Cameroon)
Brice Arsène Yonkeu has rapidly risen through the ranks of “Elite Gallery Curation,” specializing in the complexities of the contemporary African diaspora and the formation of the “diasporic self.” His work is characterized by its intimacy, often focusing on how artists of African descent navigate the “Between Home and Elsewhere” dynamic. His background in sociology and history allows him to curate shows that are as much about identity politics as they are about the formal qualities of the art.
In June 2025, Yonkeu reached a major milestone by curating a high-profile exhibition at Gagosian, New York (Park & 75). Titled Ever So Present II: Between Home and Elsewhere, the show brought together artists like Luke Agada and Emma Prempeh to investigate memory and displacement. Moderating a major public talk at Gagosian in June 2025, he proved that African-led curation can thrive in the world’s most exclusive commercial spaces without losing its radical intellectual edge.
9. Chika Okeke-Agulu (Nigeria)
Chika Okeke-Agulu is the leading “Scholar-Curator” of 2025, currently directing the African World Initiative at Princeton University. He is the preeminent voice on “Classical and Modern African Art History,” and his work focuses on rewriting the global art canon to include African modernism as a central, rather than peripheral, movement. In 2025, his influence is felt through his editorship of Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art and his mentorship of the next generation of museum directors.
This year, Okeke-Agulu spearheaded a massive global symposium on “Indigenous Modernisms” and launched a digital archive project that documents the work of modern African masters before it is lost. His curatorial work in 2025 has been largely institutional, advising major museums on their acquisition strategies for “classical” African pieces. He is on this list because he provides the intellectual foundation upon which all contemporary African curation is built.
10. Courage Dzidula Kpodo (Ghana)
Courage Dzidula Kpodo is the standout “Architect-Curator” of 2025, known for his radical approach to “Spatial Storytelling.” After completing his Master’s at MIT, he brought a structural rigor to the art world, arguing that the “white cube” is no longer a sufficient site for African art. His work often utilizes billboards, public squares, and abandoned buildings to bring photography and installations directly to the people.
In late 2024 and throughout 2025, Kpodo took the helm as the Principal Curator of the 2025 LagosPhoto Biennale. He themed the biennial Incarceration, cleverly transforming disused British colonial prisons (like Freedom Park) into exhibition stages. His work in 2025 is essential because he has effectively turned the city of Lagos itself into a curated archive, proving that the most powerful art is that which engages with the “symbolic value” of its location.
11. Daudi Karungi (Uganda)
Daudi Karungi is the central figure of the East African art scene, serving as the Director of the Kampala Art Biennale and a founding member of the Kampala Arts Trust. His curatorial mission is “Continental Balance,” working to ensure that East Africa is recognized alongside the powerhouses of West and South Africa. He is known for his “Apprenticeship Model,” where established international artists mentor emerging Ugandan talent through the biennial format.
In 2025, Karungi led the Kampala Art Biennale under the theme of “Transformation of Movements,” focusing on how technology and virtual public domains are changing daily life in the East African sub-region. His work this year has been critical in developing “Local Collectors,” as he successfully launched a 2025 initiative to educate the Ugandan public on contemporary art investment. He is deserving because he is the primary architect of Uganda’s burgeoning modern art museum movement.
12. Ekow Eshun (Ghana)
Ekow Eshun is the master of “The Black Fantastic,” a term he coined to describe the use of myth, folklore, and Afrofuturism by artists of the African diaspora. As a writer, broadcaster, and curator, his work in 2025 has focused on how “the fantastical” can be a tool for liberation and environmental justice. He is celebrated for his ability to weave together pop culture, high art, and deep history into exhibitions that feel both cinematic and scholarly.
2025 has been a landmark year for Eshun with the global tour of his exhibition The Time Is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure, which opened at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in early 2025. He also launched his highly anticipated book, The Strangers, and opened the exhibition Black Earth Rising at the Baltimore Museum of Art, which investigates the intersection of colonialism and climate change. His work is indispensable for 2025 because he has successfully established “The Black Fantastic” as one of the most dominant global art movements of the decade.
13. El Hadji Malick Ndiaye (Senegal)
Dr. El Hadji Malick Ndiaye is the leading voice in the “Decolonization of the Ethnographic Museum.” As the head curator of the Théodore Monod African Art Museum in Dakar, he is tasked with transforming an institution founded for colonial curiosity into a site of African self-representation. His work in 2025 is defined by “The Museum as a Laboratory,” where traditional artifacts are placed in direct dialogue with radical contemporary art to challenge the notion of “the static past.”
In August 2025, Ndiaye was featured in major international discourse for his work on reclaiming museum narratives “on African terms.” He has been a pivotal figure in the 2025 Dak’Art Biennale, curating the “Off” programs that emphasize local craftsmanship and metalwork. His role is essential because he is at the frontlines of the restitution debate, managing how repatriated objects are curated and re-integrated into Senegalese society.
14. Elizabeth Acaye Kerunen (Uganda)
Elizabeth Acaye Kerunen is a multidisciplinary force whose curatorial practice is an extension of her work as an activist and artist. She is known for “Embodied Curation,” which focuses on indigenous knowledge systems and climate-conscious materials like banana fiber and raffia. Since her debut at the Venice Biennale in 2022, she has become a global ambassador for “Wetland Aesthetics,” bringing the ecological realities of Uganda into the world’s most prestigious galleries.
In early 2025, Kerunen opened her first solo-curatorial and artist exhibition in the UK at Pace Gallery, titled Neena, aan uthii (See me, I am here). The show, which ran through February 2025, combined sound installations with sculptural assemblages made from traditional Ugandan weaving techniques. Her work this year is a masterclass in “Climate-Resilient Art,” proving that the materials of the African landscape are the most sophisticated tools for 2025’s global environmental conversation.
15. Gabi Ngcobo (South Africa)
Gabi Ngcobo is a powerhouse of “Institutional Re-imagining,” recently appointed as the Director of Kunstinstituut Melly in Rotterdam, making her one of the few African women leading a major European art institution in 2025. Her curatorial method is “Collaborative and Uncomfortable,” often forcing institutions to confront their own colonial ghosts. Before her move to Rotterdam, she transformed the Javett Art Centre into a “Living Academy,” a model she is now exporting globally.
In 2025, Ngcobo’s leadership at Melly has been marked by a series of “Spirit, Faith, Grace, Rage” exhibitions that challenge European audiences to look at African spirituality as a rigorous intellectual system. She also curated The Show is Over, a collaboration with Oscar Murillo that has toured major international venues in 2025. Her presence is vital because she is effectively “curating the curator,” changing the very rules of how museums operate in the 21st century.
16. Heba El-Kayal (Egypt)
Heba El-Kayal is the premier curator of “Transgenerational MENA (Middle East and North Africa) Art,” bridging the gap between the modernist pioneers of Cairo and the contemporary stars of the Gulf. Her practice is research-heavy, focusing on the preservation of artist estates and the legal frameworks of the art world. In 2025, she has become the “go-to” advisor for collectors looking to understand the intersection of North African and Middle Eastern modernism.
In 2025, she was appointed as the curator for the GENERATIONS section of the Investec Cape Town Art Fair, where she curated a dialogue titled “Play/Play-ing.” This section prioritized cross-generational conversations, pairing established masters with emerging disruptors to explore how art helps navigate an uncertain future. Her work this year at both the Norval Foundation and Cape Town Art Fair marks her as the most significant curatorial link between North and South Africa in 2025.
17. Jareh Das (Nigeria)
Dr. Jareh Das is a prolific independent curator and researcher whose 2025 was defined by high-profile international leadership. Most notably, she curated the brand-new themed section at Frieze London 2025 titled “Echoes in the Present.” This critically acclaimed section explored the deep, reverberating cultural and historical ties between Africa, Brazil, and their global diasporas, featuring ten artists whose work navigates themes of transformation, material memory, and colonial erasure.
Additionally, 2025 marked the major U.S. debut of her landmark exhibition “Body Vessel Clay: Black Women, Ceramics & Contemporary Art” at the Ford Foundation Gallery in New York. The show, which traces 70 years of Black women’s ceramic practice through the legacy of the legendary Nigerian potter Ladi Kwali, has solidified Das’s reputation as a curator who can bridge indigenous craftsmanship with global contemporary discourse. Her work is increasingly seen as the gold standard for “reparative curating,” bringing marginalized matrilineal histories into the center of the international art market.
18. Jeanne Autran-Edorh & Fabiola Büchele (Togo)
This duo, founders of Studio NEiDA, has emerged in 2025 as the leading authority on “Togolese Architectural Conservation.” Their practice is a unique blend of architecture, rigorous research, and cultural curation, focusing on how Togo’s built heritage—from ancient cave dwellings to Afro-Brazilian modernist mansions—can inform future urbanism. They are known for their methodical documentation of “Intangible Architecture,” capturing the stories of the people who live within historical sites.
In May 2025, they curated the first-ever Republic of Togo Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale. Titled Considering Togo’s Architectural Heritage, the pavilion was a landmark moment for West African design, showcasing the “Tatas Tamberma” and the nation’s modernist legacy. This project, commissioned by Sonia Lawson, made them essential for 2025 as they provided the first global platform for Togo’s rich architectural history.
19. Jumoke Sanwo (Nigeria)
Jumoke Sanwo is the leading curator of “Extended Reality (XR) and Spatial Memory” in Africa. As the director of the Revolving Art Incubator, she uses cutting-edge technology—VR, AR, and video art—to “Portal” audiences into the forgotten histories of Lagos. Her work is deeply philosophical, treating the city as a multidimensional archive where the past and future coexist in a single space.
In 2025, Sanwo received international recognition for her film and XR project Dúna Dúrà – A Portal of Re-Imagination, which investigates the “Transcendental Night Market” as a site of historical knowledge. Part of the Archive of Forgetfulness project with the Goethe-Institut, her work in 2025 is a critical intervention in how we “decolonize the archives of the future.” She is on this list because she is the primary curator using technology to ensure African history remains “un-forgettable.”
To continue your definitive list, this second batch highlights curators who have moved beyond regional influence to command major global institutions in 2025. This group is characterized by a “transnational” approach—curators who are not just representing Africa in the West, but are actively reshaping the global art canon from within the continent’s own emerging institutions.
20. Kabage Karanja & Stella Mutegi (Kenya)
Kabage Karanja and Stella Mutegi, the visionary founders of Cave_bureau, have emerged in 2025 as the ultimate “architectural anthropologists” of the global stage. Their practice is famously rooted in the “Anthropocene Museum,” a concept that uses geological sites like the volcanic caves of Kenya’s Rift Valley as galleries for exploring deep time and human survival. In 2025, they shattered long-standing historical barriers by becoming the first African-led team to spearhead the curation of the British Pavilion at the 19th International Architecture Biennale in Venice. This historic appointment represents a seismic shift in global curatorial politics, as it allowed a Kenyan perspective to re-evaluate the architectural and environmental legacy of the British Empire from within its own national shrine. Their landmark exhibition, titled The World in Common, investigates the shared and contested landscapes between the United Kingdom and its former colonial territories. Mutegi and Karanja moved away from the traditional display of static models to curate a living, breathing archive of “reparative architecture” that resonates with a global audience. The pavilion focuses specifically on the extraction of resources and the lasting ecological impact of colonial-era infrastructure on the Global South. By weaving together geological research with oral histories, they created a sensory-rich environment that challenges the Western “concrete jungle” model of modernism. Their curation is defined by a “geological humility,” acknowledging that the earth itself is the primary architect of human history and future survival. In 2025, they successfully used the Venice platform as a site for cross-continental dialogue, bringing the voices of Kenyan artisans into the heart of the European art world. Their work highlights how ancient African building techniques can offer radical solutions to the modern climate crisis affecting both the UK and the continent. The duo is celebrated for their ability to facilitate “uncomfortable” yet necessary conversations about heritage and restitution within the walls of a national institution. Their 2025 output is a masterclass in how to decenter the Western gaze within its own architectural strongholds. They have effectively turned the British Pavilion into a portal, connecting the deep time of African caves with the industrial future of the Northern Hemisphere. This achievement solidifies their status as the most influential architectural curators of the decade, forever reshaping how we perceive “common” ground.
Beyond the success in Venice, Karanja and Mutegi have spent 2025 expanding their “Cowrie Shell” research, a project that maps the movement of historical currencies and bodies across the Indian Ocean. Their influence is felt deeply in their mentorship of East African students, teaching them that architecture is as much about soil and soul as it is about steel and glass. In late 2025, they were honored with the RIBA International Award for their contribution to global architectural discourse and their commitment to decolonial practice. Their ability to move seamlessly between the wild, ancient caves of Suswa and the high-society circles of London makes them uniquely powerful mediators of the built environment. They are included on this list because they have proven that the most radical way to curate the future is to excavate the stories buried in our past. Their 2025 legacy is one of profound spatial justice and environmental empathy, marking a turning point in how African curators lead global institutions.
21. Khaled Hafez (Egypt)
Khaled Hafez is a master of “Chrono-Curating,” an approach that treats history as a fluid, overlapping layer rather than a linear timeline. Known primarily for his own paintings and video works that merge ancient Egyptian deities with pop-culture icons, his curatorial work in 2025 has focused on the “Memory of the Mediterranean.” He is an essential figure for 2025 because he bridges the gap between the rigid classical art world of Cairo and the experimental contemporary scene, often acting as a mentor to younger Egyptian artists navigating international biennials.
In 2025, Hafez curated the high-profile exhibition Tomb Sonata at the Al Markhiya Gallery in Qatar and played a pivotal role in the 2025 Cairo Biennale retrospective. His work this year has centered on the “Effervescent Practices” of the Arab world, investigating how collective memory functions as a survival mechanism in times of political instability. By placing ancient motifs alongside current events, he has successfully positioned North African contemporary art as a critical lens for understanding global identity in the 21st century.
22. Lemn Sissay (Ethiopia)
Lemn Sissay is a “Lyric Curator,” whose work in 2025 has dissolved the boundaries between poetry, public space, and visual art. As an Ethiopian-British poet and broadcaster, his curatorial practice is deeply rooted in the concept of “The Foundling”—objects and people who have been lost to history and rediscovered. In 2025, he has focused on “Generational Hope,” using his platform to curate large-scale public projects that invite the youth of the African diaspora to write their own future history.
In 2025, Sissay launched the massive national project Imagine the Future at the Southbank Centre in London. He led a team that engaged over 3,500 schoolchildren to create “Visual Poems” that were realized as a large-scale installation and a published anthology for the center’s 75th anniversary. His work this year is essential because he has successfully curated “Voice as an Object,” proving that the most influential art in 2025 is that which allows a community to see its own words reflected back to them in the public square.
23. Marie Hélène Pereira (Senegal)
Marie Hélène Pereira is the leading expert in “Performative Practices,” currently serving as a Senior Curator at Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) in Berlin. Her practice is defined by “Hospitality and Listening,” a philosophy she developed during her years as the director of programs at RAW Material Company in Dakar. In 2025, she has been at the forefront of the movement to bring African “Living Traditions”—ceremony, sound, and communal eating—into the cold, formal spaces of European museums.
In 2025, Pereira was named as a key advisor and co-curator for the 61st Venice Biennale, tasked with helping realize the late Koyo Kouoh’s vision, In Minor Keys. Her work at HKW in 2025 has also been groundbreaking, specifically the “Oasis of Resistance” series which examines how African and Caribbean communities use performance to survive climate displacement. She is deserving of this list because she is the primary curator ensuring that African “ways of knowing” are not just displayed, but are actively practiced within global institutions.
24. Marilyn Douala Bell (Cameroon)
Marilyn Douala Bell is the “Urbanist Curator” of 2025, leading the doual’art center in Cameroon, an institution that treats the entire city of Douala as an exhibition space. Her mission is “Art as a Public Utility,” where sculptures and installations are used to solve urban problems, such as marking historical boundaries or providing public seating. In 2025, she has successfully argued that the “white cube” museum is a colonial relic that does not serve the African city, moving all her curatorial focus to the streets.
The high point of her 2025 work was the coordination of the SUD (Salon Urbain de Douala) 2025 Triennial, which saw over 20 new public art commissions installed in neighborhoods that traditionally have no access to “Fine Art.” By focusing on the “Think Tank” Ars & Urbis, she has influenced urban planning across West Africa, making art a mandatory part of city development. She is an essential inclusion because she is the world’s leading practitioner of “Social Architecture Curation.”
25. Massamba Mbaye (Senegal)
Massamba Mbaye is the “Intellectual Engine” of the Senegalese art world, serving as a historian, critic, and a key member of the Dakar Biennale (Dak’Art) steering committee. His curatorial style is “Cybernetic and Historical,” often drawing links between the ancient subjective aesthetics of West Africa and the new digital age of cyber-philosophy. In 2025, he has become the bridge between the academic elite and the new wave of Senegalese street artists, ensuring that even the most radical street art is grounded in rigorous theory.
In 2025, Mbaye chaired the selection committee for the Dak’Art Biennale, where he was instrumental in setting the theme of “Continuums.” He also curated a significant retrospective at the Kemboury Gallery, mapping the evolution of Senegalese painting from the École de Dakar to the present. His work in 2025 is essential because he is the primary gatekeeper of the Senegalese canon, ensuring that the country’s artistic heritage is documented and protected as it enters the global market.
26. Mpho Matsipa (South Africa)
Mpho Matsipa is an influential curator and educator operating at the crossroads of urbanism, race, and digital space. In 2025, she was widely recognized for her leadership in the African Mobilities project, a long-term curatorial platform mapping the movement of people and ideas across the continent. Her 2025 work specifically tackled the “digital city,” curating virtual and physical exhibitions that explored how technology and social media are reshaping African urban identities.
Matsipa’s curatorial style is deeply collaborative, often bringing together architects, filmmakers, and technologists to create immersive, multi-platform experiences. She is highly regarded for her ability to navigate complex institutional spaces while maintaining a radical focus on the “Black City.” In 2025, her projects served as critical benchmarks for how curators can use the arts to address systemic issues like infrastructure and the right to the city.
27. Myriam Ben Salah (Tunisia)
Myriam Ben Salah is a curator of “Ethical Disruption,” currently the Director and Chief Curator of The Renaissance Society in Chicago. Her work is famous for its “Plot Twists”—a curatorial device she uses to subvert audience expectations about North African and Middle Eastern identity. In 2025, she has reached a level of global influence where she is simultaneously leading a major American institution and representing the French national pavilion on the world stage.
2025 is a breakthrough year for Ben Salah as she was appointed the Curator of the French Pavilion for the 61st Venice Biennale (2026). In late 2025, she also curated the “Plot Twist – Beyond Sixth Sense” program for the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, which used rare hybrid fiction-documentaries to explore political recognition. Her presence on this list is a recognition of her status as the world’s leading “Transnational Subversive,” successfully challenging western narratives from the inside of their most prestigious institutions.
28. N’Goné Fall (Senegal)
N’Goné Fall is the “Architect of Restitution,” a curator and consultant whose work in 2025 has moved beyond mere exhibitions into the realm of high-level international diplomacy. Having graduated in architecture, she treats the “Art System” as a physical structure that must be dismantled and rebuilt to be fair. In 2025, she has been the lead strategist for several European nations seeking to “de-accession” colonial-era artifacts back to West Africa.
In 2025, Fall led the “African Season 2.0” initiative, a cross-continental cultural exchange that facilitated the permanent return of over 200 looted objects to Senegal and Benin. She has also been a vocal critic of “Superficial Decolonization,” using her 2025 residency at various global universities to teach curators how to manage the return of cultural property. She is on this list because she is the “General” in the global fight for African cultural sovereignty.
29. Nabila Abdel Nabi (Egypt)
Nabila Abdel Nabi is the curator responsible for “The Global Turn” at Tate Modern in London, where she serves as the Curator of International Art. Her work is characterized by “Textual Abstraction,” exploring how artists from the Middle East and Africa use calligraphy and writing as a form of political resistance. In 2025, she has been the primary figure integrating North African modernism into the permanent galleries of the world’s most visited modern art museum.
In 2025, Abdel Nabi curated the landmark Tate Modern program on “Transnational Modernism,” which highlighted the forgotten links between Egyptian surrealists and the global avant-garde. She also facilitated a series of 2025 commissions by artists like Abbas Akhavan and Kader Attia, focusing on the “invisible architecture” of migration. Her work is essential for 2025 because she has successfully “Africanized” the Tate’s collection, ensuring that Egyptian modernism is no longer viewed as a footnote to European art history.
30. Nana Biamah-Ofosu (Ghana)
Nana Biamah-Ofosu has emerged in 2025 as the preeminent “archival architect,” specializing in the recovery and reimagining of West African modernist histories. Her landmark achievement this year was her lead curatorship of the major exhibition Tropical Modernism: Architecture and Power in West Africa at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London. This ambitious project, which she steered with academic precision and a “reparative” lens, traced the evolution of the Tropical Modernist movement from its colonial origins as an instrument of empire to its post-independence reclamation by African architects. Biamah-Ofosu’s curation was lauded for its ability to decenter European narratives, instead highlighting how Ghanaian and Nigerian designers adapted brutalist geometry to suit local climates and social rituals. Throughout 2025, she transformed the traditional museum experience into a site of active dialogue, integrating immersive film installations with meticulous oral history archives from the first generation of African architects. Her work is characterized by a deep commitment to the “African home,” exploring how domestic spaces served as quiet yet powerful sites of political resistance during the transition to sovereignty. By bridging her practice between her studio in London and her research sites in Accra, she has facilitated a transformative cross-continental exchange that challenges the global architectural canon. She is recognized for her unique ability to treat buildings not just as structures, but as living vessels of memory and identity. In 2025, her influence expanded beyond the V&A as she led a series of high-level symposia on “Decolonizing the Built Environment” across Europe and Africa. Her curatorial method is fundamentally collaborative, often involving local craftsmen and community elders to validate the “intangible” aspects of architectural heritage. Biamah-Ofosu has effectively redefined the role of the architectural curator as a historian, a social activist, and a mediator of future urbanism. Her 2025 output is essential because it provides the intellectual blueprint for how the diaspora can reconnect with the continent’s structural legacy.
Beyond her institutional triumphs at the V&A, Biamah-Ofosu’s 2025 was defined by her work with the African Futures Institute, where she curated a series of public workshops titled The Memory of the House. These projects utilized architectural drawing and storytelling to help displaced communities document their lost homes, proving that her practice is as much about social justice as it is about aesthetic history. In late 2025, she was also named a lead strategist for a new sustainable housing initiative in Accra, which aims to apply the lessons of 1950s Tropical Modernism to the modern climate crisis. Her influence is particularly strong among young Black architects who see her as a model for how to integrate rigorous historical research into contemporary practice. She was awarded the 2025 Curator of the Year by the Architectural Review, a fitting tribute to her role in elevating African domesticity to the global stage. Her designs and curated spaces are characterized by a sense of “structural empathy,” acknowledging the weight of the past while designing for a more inclusive future. Nana Biamah-Ofosu is not just documenting the built environment; she is curating the very foundations of a new, decolonized African identity. Her presence on this list is a testament to her status as one of the most intellectually influential voices in 2025’s global design landscape.
31. Nontobeko Ntombela (South Africa)
Nontobeko Ntombela is the leading expert in “Black Feminist Archiving,” currently a senior lecturer and curator at Wits University in Johannesburg. Her practice is “Archeological,” specifically focused on unearthing the work of Black South African women artists who were erased by the apartheid-era art world. In 2025, she has become the most important voice in the movement to reclaim the domestic and communal “Crafts” of Black women as high-concept Fine Art.
In 2025, Ntombela won the South African National Arts and Culture Award for Outstanding Curator, a recognition of her massive retrospective, ‘Then I Knew I Was Good at Painting’: Esther Mahlangu, which toured major museums throughout the year. She also published a seminal 2025 book chapter on “Feminist Archiving Practice” in Reckoning with History. Her inclusion on this list is a recognition of her role as the “Restorer of Erasures,” single-handedly bringing forgotten female masters into the 2025 spotlight.
32. Nuna Adisenu-Doe (Ghana)
Nuna Adisenu-Doe is the visionary founder of Compound House Gallery in Accra, a space that has become a vital hub for experimental and community-led curation. In 2025, he was celebrated for his ability to nurture emerging talent through projects like Flower Power: An Arewa Story from the South by Al Hassan Issah. His curatorial vision is rooted in the “compound house” philosophy—a traditional Ghanaian living arrangement that emphasizes communal life—applying this concept to the way art is consumed.
His 2025 group exhibition, A Mirror on Itself, co-curated with Folikwei Art Gallery, was a critical success that explored self-reflexivity in contemporary Ghanaian painting. Adisenu-Doe’s work is significant because it operates outside the traditional “white cube” gallery model, creating spaces where the neighborhood and the global art world intersect. His leadership has provided a sustainable model for independent spaces that prioritize local relevance over international market trends.
33. Oluremi C. Onabanjo (Nigeria)
Oluremi C. Onabanjo is the “Image Strategist” of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, where she serves as the Peter Schub Curator in the Department of Photography. Her curatorial style is defined by “The Ethics of Looking,” focusing on how photography has been used both to oppress and to liberate the African body. In 2025, she has become the primary global authority on the “Modern African Archive,” helping MoMA rethink its entire approach to the medium of photography.
The highlight of her 2025 career was the opening of New Photography 2025: Lines of Belonging at MoMA. This blockbuster exhibition brought together 13 artists and collectives to investigate how photography can build “sites of communion” across cities like Johannesburg and Lagos. By focusing on “slowness and care” as an antidote to digital image consumption, her 2025 work has set the global standard for how museums should handle contemporary photography in the age of AI.
34. Omar Kholeif (Egypt)
Omar Kholeif is a curator of “Digital Dreamwork,” operating at the intersection of the metaverse, Arab futurism, and institutional strategy. In 2025, they transitioned from their long-serving role at the Sharjah Art Foundation to become a Professor and Programme Leader for the Masters in Curatorial Practice at the Glasgow School of Art. Kholeif is an essential figure for 2025 because they are the leading theorist on how “diasporic and marginalized aesthetics” can survive in the “slippery age of the internet.”
In 2025, Kholeif launched the metaverse platform artPost21, a not-for-profit agency designed as a “wayfinding” tool for 21st-century visual culture. They also curated a series of 2025 exhibitions that use “AI and Avatar Performances” to discuss the Egyptian diaspora. Their move to Glasgow marks a major 2025 shift, as they are now training the first generation of Scottish curators to view “Global Art Theory” through an Egyptian-centered lens.
35. Osei Bonsu (Ghana)
Osei Bonsu is the “Senior Curator of the African Diaspora” at Tate Modern, and in 2025, he has reached the pinnacle of his institutional influence. His curatorial practice is “Expansive and Synthetic,” often bringing together high-fashion, vernacular crafts, and traditional painting to tell a single national story. He is widely credited with making African modernism “commercially and critically undeniable” to the UK public.
In late 2025, Bonsu opened the blockbuster exhibition Nigerian Modernism: Tracing the Birth of a National Aesthetic at Tate Modern. Featuring over 250 works, it is the first major UK show to trace the development of modern art in Nigeria from the 1940s to the 1990s. His work this year has redefined “Natural Synthesis”—the idea of blending local and global forms—for a 2025 audience, making him the primary bridge between the Lagos art scene and the London museum world.
36. Paul Emmanuel Loga Mahop (Cameroon)
Paul Emmanuel Loga Mahop is the most significant “Institutional Restitution Specialist” of 2025, leading the National Museum of Cameroon’s international negotiation team. His work is “Ethical and Tactical,” working closely with UNESCO and the African Union to develop new legal frameworks for the return of cultural property. In 2025, he has moved the restitution debate from “angry demands” to “sustainable cooperation,” focusing on how returned objects can be safely housed and displayed in Cameroon.
In early 2025, Mahop led the UNESCO-African Union Dialogue in Addis Ababa, which brought together all 54 African Member States to create a “Unified Restitution Plan.” He also curated a 2025 “Digital Inventory” project that allowed Cameroonian citizens to view their nation’s lost artifacts through VR before their physical return. His role is essential for 2025 because he is the primary architect of the “Reparative Infrastructure” that will house Africa’s returned treasures.
37. Paula Nascimento (Angola)
Paula Nascimento is a curator of “Postcolonial Space,” trained as an architect at the Architectural Association in London. She famously co-curated the Angola Pavilion that won the Golden Lion in 2013, and in 2025, she has become the leading global voice on how “Urban Dynamics” in the Global South can inform contemporary art. She is known for her “Research-Studio” model, where she treats the city of Luanda as a living laboratory for decolonial thought.
The major highlight of her 2025 career was her appointment as the Co-Curator of Sharjah Biennial 17 (2027). Throughout 2025, she has been traveling across Africa to commission site-specific works for the biennial that focus on “Geopolitical Geographies.” She also chairs the artistic committee at the Nesr Art Foundation, where she has curated a series of 2025 digital platforms called Are You For Real, exploring transnational collaboration between Angola and the world.
38. Portia Malatjie (South Africa)
Portia Malatjie is the “Curator of the Subdued,” a specialist in sound art and “reparative practices” who currently teaches at the University of Cape Town. Her work is characterized by “Quietude and Meditation,” focusing on how marginalized communities use sound and silence to heal from the trauma of land dispossession. In 2025, she has been lauded for her ability to curate “Invisible Experiences,” making sound installations feel as heavy and significant as physical sculptures.
In 2024 and through the 2025 tour, Malatjie curated the South African Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, titled Quiet Ground. The exhibition featured the sound collective MADEYOULOOK and was widely praised as the most “Healing” pavilion of the year. Her work in 2025 has centered on “Water and Black Life,” curating a series of 8-channel sound compositions that weave together songs of rain and harvest from across South Africa. She is a vital inclusion because she is the primary curator of “African Soundscapes” as a form of political resistance.
39. Raphael Chikukwa (Zimbabwe)
Raphael Chikukwa is the “Guardian of Zimbabwe’s Visual Voice,” serving as the Executive Director of the National Gallery of Zimbabwe. He is famous for his “Nationalism through Curation,” having founded the Zimbabwe Pavilion at the Venice Biennale to ensure his country’s artists were seen on the world stage. In 2025, his work has focused on “Post-Independence Rhetoric,” investigating how Zimbabwe’s turbulent history can be told through its thriving stone sculpture and painting scenes.
In 2025, Chikukwa led the Harare Biennale, which focused on the theme of “Resilience and Repair.” He also served on multiple 2025 international juries, including the Dakar Biennale, where he advocated for a “Pan-African Curatorial Bloc.” His work this year has been critical in stabilizing the Zimbabwean art market, successfully launching a 2025 endowment fund to support the country’s national collection. He is on this list because he is the primary defender of Zimbabwe’s artistic independence in 2025.
40. Rujeko Hockley (Zimbabwe)
Rujeko Hockley is a curator of “Black American Modernism,” currently serving as the Arnhold Associate Curator at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Her work is “Survey-Centric,” focusing on how African diasporic artists have built the American identity. In 2025, she has reached a peak of institutional power, curating the largest museum surveys for Black artists in MoMA’s and the Whitney’s history, effectively rewriting the “American Sublime” to include the Black experience.
In 2025, Hockley organized the blockbuster Whitney survey Amy Sherald: American Sublime, which brought together 50 major paintings to examine the “interiority and selfhood” of Black Americans. She also participated in the 2025 Whitney Biennial, curating a section that spotlighted transnational connections between the US and Southern Africa. Her role in 2025 is essential because she is the primary curator mapping the “Continuum of Black Identity” across the Atlantic.
41. Salah M. Hassan (Sudan)
Salah M. Hassan is the “Intellectual Giant” of African art history, currently a Distinguished Professor at Cornell and the Director of the Africa Institute in Sharjah. His work is “Comparative and Historical,” specializing in the modernisms of Sudan and Egypt. In 2025, he has been at the center of the global effort to document the “Soudan Modern” movement, a project that has taken on profound emotional weight due to the ongoing conflict in Sudan.
In 2025, Hassan spearheaded the “Khartoum School” research cycle, which resulted in a massive traveling exhibition and publication that traces the making of the modern art movement in Sudan. He also guest-edited a 2025 special issue of Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art on “Indigenous Globalisms.” He is on this list because he is the primary curator protecting the “Intellectual Legacy of Sudan” during a time of national crisis, ensuring that the country’s modern art history is not lost to the fog of war.
42. Salimata Diop (Senegal)
Salimata Diop is a curator of “The Wake,” a philosophy that views contemporary art as a necessary disruption and a call to consciousness. In 2025, she has reached a pinnacle of cultural leadership as the Artistic Director of the 15th Dakar Biennale (Dak’Art 2024/2025). Her curatorial vision for this edition, titled The Wake, has been hailed as a masterpiece of “Ecological Curation,” forcing a dialogue between the urban density of Dakar and the rising tides of the Atlantic. She is known for her “Musical Curation,” often composing original soundscapes to accompany her exhibitions, treating the gallery as a multi-sensory environment.
In 2025, after a political postponement in late 2024, Diop successfully navigated the opening of the Dakar Biennale, managing the primary exhibition at the former Palais de Justice. Her work this year has been defined by the integration of “Oceanic Knowledge,” showcasing artists who explore the sea as a site of both trauma and future potential. She is on this list because she is the primary curator who has managed to keep the continent’s most important biennial relevant, rigorous, and deeply rooted in Senegalese soil during a time of immense political transition.
43. Simon Njami (Cameroon)
Simon Njami is the “Philosopher-Curator” whose influence on African art history is perhaps second only to Okwui Enwezor. As the co-founder of Revue Noire, he has spent decades defining what it means to be a “modern African artist.” In 2025, his work has shifted toward “Mentorship as Curation,” leading the AtWork project and various masterclasses that train the next generation of curators to think beyond Western categories. He is a curator of “The Divine Comedy,” a term he uses to describe the absurd and beautiful struggle of the human condition in the post-colonial world.
In 2025, Njami served as a key moderator and intellectual anchor for the Dakar Biennale and curated the Ivory Coast Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. His 2025 activities have centered on “The Mechanic of Memories,” a theme exploring how individual and collective histories can be reassembled to build new national identities. He is an essential inclusion because he remains the “North Star” for African curators, providing the high-level theoretical framework that allows African art to be understood as a universal, rather than just a regional, contribution to humanity.
44. Sonia Lawson (Togo)
Sonia Lawson is the “Visionary Director” who has transformed a symbol of colonial oppression—the former German Governor’s Palace in Lomé—into the Palais de Lomé, one of the most successful art centers in West Africa. Her curatorial style is “Heritage-Led Modernism,” focusing on how Togo’s rich history of craft and architecture can be used as a foundation for avant-garde design. In 2025, she has become the primary advocate for “Design Sovereignty,” arguing that African design should be celebrated on the continent before it is exported to Europe.
2025 is a historic year for Lawson as she served as the Commissioner for the first-ever Republic of Togo Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Additionally, she curated the sweeping 2025 survey exhibition Design in West Africa at the Palais de Lomé, which brought together over 20 designers (including names like Nifemi Marcus-Bello) to explore the theme of “Unity in Multiplicity.” Her work is indispensable for 2025 because she has single-handedly put Togo on the global map as a premier destination for high-concept African design and contemporary art.
45. Tandazani Dhlakama (Zimbabwe)
Tandazani Dhlakama is a curator of “Global Africa,” known for her ability to track the movement of African aesthetics across the Atlantic. In 2025, she made one of the most significant career moves in the industry, transitioning from her role at Zeitz MOCAA in Cape Town to become the Curator of Global Africa at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto. Her work is characterized by “Figurative Realism,” having co-curated the globally touring exhibition When We See Us, which has redefined the world’s understanding of Black portraiture over the last century.
In March 2025, Dhlakama officially assumed her role at the ROM, where she is now tasked with reinterpreting Canada’s largest collection of African art for a 21st-century audience. Her 2025 focus has been on “Entangled Histories,” building a new vision for how museums can engage with the African diaspora in North America. She is deserving of this list because she represents the “Global African Curator” of 2025—an expert who can successfully manage a colonial-era Western collection while remaining deeply connected to the contemporary pulse of the continent.
46. Titi Ogufere (Nigeria)
Titi Ogufere is the formidable powerhouse behind the architecture and design landscape in Nigeria, widely celebrated as the founder of Design Week Lagos (DWL), yet her 2025 recognition stems from her role as the festival’s primary curator and visionary architect. In 2025, she elevated the festival to unprecedented heights by curating the “Lagos Design District,” a sprawling urban intervention that integrated the city’s architectural heritage with contemporary gallery spaces. Her curatorial vision for 2025 was centered on “Restorative Design,” focusing on how Nigerian spaces can be reclaimed and reimagined to foster community healing and productivity. Ogufere successfully navigated the complex intersection of commercial interests and pure artistic curation, ensuring that the 2025 festival featured a rigorous selection of works that challenged the boundaries of African modernism. She was instrumental in curating the “Young Contemporaries” pavillion, providing a global platform for emerging Nigerian designers whose work might otherwise have remained local. Her leadership in 2025 also extended to her role as the President of the International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers, where she used her global influence to champion the inclusion of African designers in international standards and codes. Ogufere’s ability to curate an entire city-wide atmosphere has made her the most influential figure in West African spatial design. She spent the year orchestrating high-level collaborations between the Lagos State Government and international design houses, proving that curation is as much about diplomacy as it is about art. Her 2025 framework for DWL broke attendance records and was cited by global design critics as the most significant cultural event on the continent this year. Ogufere is not just a founder; she is the curator of a new Nigerian identity, one that is sophisticated, technically proficient, and deeply rooted in its own historical narrative.
Beyond the festival, Ogufere’s 2025 was defined by her launch of the “Essential Design” monograph series, a curated publication project documenting the history of Nigerian interior architecture. This project serves as a vital archival intervention, ensuring that the work of past and present Nigerian designers is preserved for future generations of students and practitioners. She also curated a series of private design salons throughout the year that brought together the continent’s most influential collectors and makers, fostering a new network of African patronage. Her curatorial philosophy in 2025 emphasized “The Power of the Local,” encouraging designers to look inward at indigenous materials like raffia, wood, and clay before seeking foreign alternatives. Ogufere’s influence is seen in the way she has professionalized the design industry in Nigeria, establishing strict curatorial standards that have raised the quality of output across the board. She was awarded the 2025 “Design Icon” award in London, a recognition of her tireless advocacy for African creative excellence on the world stage. Her work has fundamentally shifted the global perception of Lagos from a city of consumption to a city of high-level production and curation. Even while managing large-scale commercial projects, she maintains a dedicated mentorship program for female designers, ensuring the future of the industry is inclusive and diverse. Her 2025 legacy is one of institutional building and aesthetic refinement, making her an indispensable presence on this list. Ogufere remains the primary gatekeeper and champion of the Nigerian design narrative.
47. Tokini Peterside-Schwebig (Nigeria)
Tokini Peterside-Schwebig is the “Strategic Architect” of the Nigerian art boom, serving as the Founder and Chairman of ART X Lagos. Her curatorial influence is “Infrastructure-Based”; she does not just curate shows, she curates the entire ecosystem of collectors, galleries, and public audiences. In 2025, she celebrated the 10th anniversary of the fair, proving that a locally-born art fair can become a globally recognized institution with the same weight as Frieze or Art Basel.
The 2025 edition of ART X Lagos, titled 10X, was curated under the theme “Imagining Otherwise, No Matter the Tide.” Peterside-Schwebig oversaw a landmark program that included the ART X ICON exhibition honoring J.D. ‘Okhai Ojeikere and a series of “Special Projects” that brought together established masters like Bruce Onobrakpeya with Gen-Z digital artists. She is on this list because she is the primary curator of the “Lagos Brand,” having successfully positioned Nigeria as the heartbeat of African creative commerce in 2025.
48. Touria El Glaoui (Morocco)
Touria El Glaoui is the “Global Navigator” of the African art market, serving as the founding director of the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair. Her curatorial mission is “Decentralization,” ensuring that African artists have a dedicated, elite platform in London, New York, and Marrakech. In 2025, she has successfully expanded the fair’s reach into the “Global South,” inviting galleries from the Caribbean and Latin America to participate in a dialogue about shared colonial and artistic histories.
In 2025, El Glaoui celebrated the 13th edition of 1-54 London at Somerset House and the 2025 Marrakech edition, which featured a special tribute to her father, the painter Hassan El Glaoui. Her work this year has focused on “Institutional Relationships,” successfully facilitating the acquisition of over 100 works by major global museums through the fair’s platform. She is an essential inclusion because she is the primary curator of the “Commercial Value” of African art, ensuring that visibility translates into long-term institutional stability for the artists.
49. Ugochukwu-Smooth C. Nzewi (Nigeria)
Ugochukwu-Smooth C. Nzewi is the “Insider-Disruptor” at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, where he serves as the Steven and Lisa Tananbaum Curator of Painting and Sculpture. His curatorial practice is “Scholar-Driven,” focusing on how African modernist decisions were made by artists as political and intellectual acts. In 2025, he has been the primary architect of MoMA’s efforts to “re-hang” its history, ensuring that African artists are integrated into the main story of 20th-century art rather than being siloed in a separate gallery.
In 2025, Nzewi was a pivotal figure in the selection committees for major global biennials and led MoMA’s acquisition strategy for “Transnational Modernism.” His work this year has centered on “Historical Gaps,” identifying and filling the missing chapters of the African avant-garde within the museum’s permanent collection. He is on this list because he is the most powerful African voice inside the world’s most influential museum, actively “writing the next chapter” of global art history in 2025.
50. Wairimũ Nduba (Kenya)
Wairimũ Nduba is a curator and researcher whose 2025 projects centered on the intersection of sound, memory, and the archive. As a key figure in the East African art scene, she has pioneered the use of “sonic curation,” where audio archives and musical heritage are treated as primary art objects. Her 2025 exhibitions often involved deep dives into historical audio to create contemporary dialogues about national identity and the decolonization of the airwaves.
Nduba is also recognized for her work with the Nairobi Contemporary Art Institute (NCAI), where she helped curate major retrospectives of East African modernists. Her approach is characterized by meticulous attention to “unheard” histories, often centering the voices of women and marginalized communities. In 2025, her work was cited as a prime example of how African curators are using multi-disciplinary media to build inclusive national narratives.
Conclusion
The 50 individuals featured on this inaugural list represent more than just the “success stories” of 2025; they represent a fundamental change in how the world engages with the African creative mind. Through their exhibitions, books, fairs, and institutions, they have proven that African curators are no longer waiting for a seat at the table—they are building their own tables, in their own cities, using their own languages. As we move into 2026, the work of these visionaries will continue to ripple outward, inspiring a new generation of custodians who understand that to curate is to care for the soul of a people. The Africans Column remains committed to supporting these giants as they continue to project the brilliance of the continent onto the world stage.
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