Ghanaian cultural historian and filmmaker Nana Oforiatta-Ayim
is challenging this prevailing narrative. For Oforiatta-Ayim, it’s the
informal methods of passing down knowledge alien to Western cultures
which have contributed to this idea of ahistorical Africa.
From oral histories to drumming communication, the cultural historian
hopes to “validate more informal types of knowledge by translating them
into more contemporary forms.”
Oforiatta-Ayim has developed the Living History Hub
which involves her setting up small kiosks—initially within different
regions in Ghana—which become centers for collecting oral histories
managed by local communities. In photo-booth style, people enter the
kiosk to be filmed telling their histories.
Initially the project was
funded by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), and has grown
into the Cultural Encyclopaedia online platform.
The space continues to evolve as people bring along objects which have
been passed down to them and photographs which can then be scanned. This
way, histories are recorded in more accessible and lasting formats,
while the cultural value of traditional methods of historical
storytelling is maintained.
