Essay · March 2024
The Idea Behind Connecting the Dots
In 'The Idea Behind Connecting the Dots,' Tobi Bolaji Idowu reflects on the founding thesis of A Whitespace Creative Arts Foundation: that meaningful cultural work in Lagos is less about producing new artefacts than about placing existing people, projects and archives in conversation. Drawing on years of programming across the city, the essay reframes the role of a foundation from producer to convenor, a quiet infrastructure that holds relationships over time. Idowu argues that no single institution holds the full picture, and that the long arc of culture depends on collaboration across artists, communities, funders and disciplines. Connecting the dots, in this reading, is both a curatorial method and a civic responsibility, one that treats the relationship, rather than the artwork, as the true unit of cultural practice.
By Tobi Bolaji Idowu · Published on Medium
Summary
In 'The Idea Behind Connecting the Dots,' Tobi Bolaji Idowu reflects on the founding thesis of A Whitespace Creative Arts Foundation: that meaningful cultural work in Lagos is less about producing new artefacts than about placing existing people, projects and archives in conversation. Drawing on years of programming across the city, the essay reframes the role of a foundation from producer to convenor, a quiet infrastructure that holds relationships over time. Idowu argues that no single institution holds the full picture, and that the long arc of culture depends on collaboration across artists, communities, funders and disciplines. Connecting the dots, in this reading, is both a curatorial method and a civic responsibility, one that treats the relationship, rather than the artwork, as the true unit of cultural practice.
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