Andréas Lang, Lagos. A Story of Disappearance, detail, Lagos Biennial 2019.
Andréas Lang, Lagos. A Story of Disappearance, detail, Lagos Biennial 2019.
Born Zweibrücken, Germany (1965), lives and works in Berlin, Germany
LAGOS. A Story of Disappearance 2019
Photography and video installation
Courtesy of the artist
In Badagry, there is the point of no return where slaves were shipped to Brazil, to uncertain destinations, to disappear and to never come back. The Ilojo Bar (also called the “Olaiya House” or “Casa do Fernandez”), was a Brazilian-styled historic building located near Tinubu Square in Lagos Island. For 161 years, this house was part of the Brazilian Quarter of Lagos and was built by Africans who regained their freedom from their “Portuguese masters” in Brazil. On September 11th, 2016, it was demolished unexpectedly by a developer. It now lies as a pile of rubble that appears like an open wound on Lagos Island. Through photography and video, Lang uncovers different layers of history and mythology to blend together a narrative of construction and destruction to show the immanent social, political, and ecological realities.
