Oba African Art Gallery

From 1998 to 2010, the Oba African Art Gallery was, in Barcelona, one of the places where Edith Mbella built her practice as gallerist, curator and lecturer.

A gallery founded in Barcelona

The Oba African Art Gallery was founded in 1998 by Edith Mbella with Didac Caparros. It settled in Barcelona, a city where it developed its activity for an audience attentive to African art. For twelve years the gallery presented works of ritual and African art to collectors and a wider public.

Thematic exhibitions

The programme was organised by theme rather than by simply hanging pieces. This choice illustrates a conviction that would reappear later in the practice: an object is understood in relation to others, to a function, to a context. About ten thematic exhibitions were presented, from statuary to textiles and ceremonial objects.

Lectures and outreach

Alongside the gallery’s activity, Edith Mbella gave lectures for national and international bodies, among them Casa África, the Spanish institution devoted to building ties with the African continent.

• Thematic exhibitions devoted to African art.
• Lectures for national and international bodies (Casa África, notably).
• Meetings with collectors, dealers and institutions gallerists, private collectors, curators and researchers from Europe and Africa.

What this period gave the practice

These twelve years gave the practice a fine knowledge of the Spanish and European market, its expectations and customs, as well as a habit of mediation toward non-specialist audiences. They explain the attention paid today to training and lectures.