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JAMES BARNOR : A RETROSPECTIVE

Past viewing_room
23 November 2019 - 10 May 2020

James Barnor 

A Retrospective 

23rd November, 2019 - 10th May,  2020

 

James Barnor (b.1929) is now widely recognized as of Ghana's most pioneering photographers. Taught by his cousins J. P. D. Dodoo and Julius Aikins, and gifted with equipments from his uncle Mr. William Ankrah, his career began modestly. 

 

Determined and dedicated,  Barnor became the first photojournalist at the inception of the Daily Graphic newspaper in 1950. Three years later, he opened Ever Young, his first photographic studio in Jamestown. 

 

Taking innovation in his stride, Barnor moved to London in 1959 to develop his practice. He returned to Ghana a decade later to establish the first color photo-processing laboratory for Sick-Hagemeyer and a place of his own, Studio X23, in Accra. 

 

With an expansive oeuvre amassed over 70years, Barnor's archives unearthed stories told through negatives. It was an intimate process working meticulously and looking through his collection was breathtaking. 

 

Ever the vivid story teller, Barnor was trusting enough of my interrogations to recollect decades-old details.  This is how we know one of his many muses, captured in the elegant silhouette portrait of 1971, is Margaret Obiri Yeboah. It is also how we understand the broader political context for the National Liberation Movement in Kumasi,  1956, to the historical gem of Kwame Nkrumah with Komla Agbeli Gbedemah at Osu castle in 1958. 

 

Every image serves as an artifact of his overarching photography to celebrate and capture. Life itself has been reflected in this exhibition, across eight themes: Family Affair; Governance and Order; Sports; Muses; Iconic; Community; Rhythm and Young at Heart. 

 

Barnor's voice is defiant as his lens. It was crucial to frame each image with a soundscape that cascades between each memory to heighten the context. The audio that accompanies the exhibition was created  by Edwvn,  with references to Highlife highflyers, King Bruce; The Black Beats; and the selections from E. T. Mensah's music catalogue from the 70s. This spotlights the music that means the most to Barnor. 

 

The retrospective offers space to meditate on the lives that lived and their experiences. The question for us remains how we can reflect on documented history to celebrate the past and take heed for the future. 

 

 

Nubuke Foundation exists to preserve, record and promote Ghanaian history, heritage, and culture. It is only befitting to acknowledge Barnor as our inaugural exhibition in our new gallery. 

 

Curator: Bianca Ama Manu

    • James Barnor, Evelyn Abbew, Ever Young Studio, Accra, 1950s
      James Barnor, Evelyn Abbew, Ever Young Studio, Accra, 1950s
    • James Barnor, Juliet Sackuah Quao-Sackey, Studio X23, Accra, c. 1974
      James Barnor, Juliet Sackuah Quao-Sackey, Studio X23, Accra, c. 1974
    • James Barnor, Margaret Obiri Yeboah, Accra, 1971
      James Barnor, Margaret Obiri Yeboah, Accra, 1971
    • James Barnor, Naa Jacobson as Ballroom Queen, Ever Young studio, Accra, c.1955
      James Barnor, Naa Jacobson as Ballroom Queen, Ever Young studio, Accra, c.1955
    • James Barnor, Portrait, Rochester, Kent, 1964
      James Barnor, Portrait, Rochester, Kent, 1964
    • James Barnor, Print in progress, Studio X23, Accra, 1965
      James Barnor, Print in progress, Studio X23, Accra, 1965
    • James Barnor, Rema Nelson, Drum test shoot, Battersea Park, London, 1960
      James Barnor, Rema Nelson, Drum test shoot, Battersea Park, London, 1960
    • James Barnor, Sarah Mills Okaikoi, Flamingo Cover, Ghana Edition, London, 1965
      James Barnor, Sarah Mills Okaikoi, Flamingo Cover, Ghana Edition, London, 1965
    • James Barnor, Wedding Guest of engineer Amarkai Laryea, London, 1964
      James Barnor, Wedding Guest of engineer Amarkai Laryea, London, 1964
    • James Barnor, Mary Abbey & friend, Studio X23, Accra, c.1980
      James Barnor, Mary Abbey & friend, Studio X23, Accra, c.1980
    • James Barnor, Sick - Hagemeyer Shop Assitant, Station Road, Accra, 1971
      James Barnor, Sick - Hagemeyer Shop Assitant, Station Road, Accra, 1971
    Close
  • James Barnor, Wedding, Engineer Amarkai Laryea & Wife, London, 1964
    Artworks

    James Barnor

    Wedding, Engineer Amarkai Laryea & Wife, London, 1964

    FAMILY AFFAIR

    The things about the camera is it brings families together:

    weddings, baptisms, [and] special occasions…

    Over fifty percent of my work as a photographer is families -

    After all, the images I take are to remember or record these moments: that’s all we have

    We also form families in the diaspora:

    Wherever we travel, [and] where we live,

    I was lucky enough to document it.

    It bring us together; the camera does that best. 

     

    - James Barnor

    • James Barnor, Christening Celebration, Vanderpuye family & friends, London, c.1960
      James Barnor, Christening Celebration, Vanderpuye family & friends, London, c.1960
    • James Barnor, Wedding, Unknown, Holy Trinity Cathedral, Accra, c.1972
      James Barnor, Wedding, Unknown, Holy Trinity Cathedral, Accra, c.1972
    • James Barnor, Nii Ayi, wedding guest, Holy Trinity Cathedral, Accra, c.1970 – 1980
      James Barnor, Nii Ayi, wedding guest, Holy Trinity Cathedral, Accra, c.1970 – 1980
    • James Barnor, Wedding, Engineer Amarkai Laryea & Wife, London, 1964
      James Barnor, Wedding, Engineer Amarkai Laryea & Wife, London, 1964
    • James Barnor, Ivy Barnor, eldest sister, Adabraka, Accra, c.1950s
      James Barnor, Ivy Barnor, eldest sister, Adabraka, Accra, c.1950s
    • James Barnor, Wedding, Class-Peter & wife, Chief of Otublohum, Nii Amunakwa (centre), Wesley Methodist Church, Accra, c.1950
      James Barnor, Wedding, Class-Peter & wife, Chief of Otublohum, Nii Amunakwa (centre), Wesley Methodist Church, Accra, c.1950
    • James Barnor, Osekre & Friend, Accra, 1978
      James Barnor, Osekre & Friend, Accra, 1978
    • James Barnor, Barnor captures a woman gazing through his Linhoff camera, wedding of Border control officer & wife, Ghana-Togo border, c.1958 -1959
      James Barnor, Barnor captures a woman gazing through his Linhoff camera, wedding of Border control officer & wife, Ghana-Togo border, c.1958 -1959
    • James Barnor, Ga Homowo Festival Celebration, Mother & Children, London, c.1965-1966
      James Barnor, Ga Homowo Festival Celebration, Mother & Children, London, c.1965-1966
    • James Barnor, Portrait, celebrating 150th Anniversary of Wesley Methodist Church, Studio X23, Accra, 1976
      James Barnor, Portrait, celebrating 150th Anniversary of Wesley Methodist Church, Studio X23, Accra, 1976
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