Nubuke Foundation presents ‘Ending The Beginning…’

…An exhibition of works by Eric Kpakpo and photographs by Regula Tschumi

Nubuke Foundation presents an exhibition of works by Eric Kpakpo and photographs by Regula Tschumi at its gallery in East Legon, Accra. The exhibition opened on December 11, 2025 and set to end on February 28, 2026.

This exhibition highlights the talent of Eric Kpakpo, a carpenter, who having apprenticed with pioneering figurative coffin maker, Paa Joe in Accra, belongs to the second generation of figurative coffin makers. As a master craftsman, Eric’s works are engaging and sobering in equal measures.

The hand-painted finish in bold and vibrant colour stand out – unique in style and creativity. Complemented by his mastery in wood carving and finishing, we are presented with a new genre in Ghanaian art landscape.  Made by specialist carpenters, coffins, shaped as everyday objects – tools, buildings, foods, footwear, instruments and more, are adaptations of figurative funerary palanquin traditions of the Ga people.

In Ghana today, the coffins now serve as expressive symbols – representing tradition and modernity, carrying forward the stories, associations and aspirations of the deceased – albeit in death.

Additionally, they reflect the tastes of the community as seen with the vibrant clothing of passers-by, vivid hues from the flags fluttering on the flotilla of boats across the ocean and in styles similar to hand-painted film posters of old. Eric’s work will be complemented by the photography of Regula Tschumi, a Swiss social anthropologist, PhD graduate and photographer. Having chosen photography as a means of documenting her ethnographic research in Ghana, her images have become an invaluable resource for studying the traditions of the Ga people.

Her photographs are so authentic that they offer an intimate and open encounter with individuals, even in death. Since 2006, her documentary images of figurative coffins and burial rituals have been exhibited numerous times, including at the Museum of Sepulchral Culture in Kassel, Germany.

Eric’s work is always on view at his atelier in Labadi, but they have been shown worldwide in Europe, USA, Asia and recently at Magnin A. in France. Exhibition opened to the public from Thursday, December 11 and continues until February 28, 2026.

Nubuke Foundation

Nubuke Foundation is a private visual art and cultural institution based in Accra, Ghana. Founded in 2006, it serves as a nexus for arts and culture across the country while supporting the artistic practice of emerging and established Ghanaian artists. The foundation’s programming includes exhibitions, art talks, seminars, workshops and spaces for drama, poetry, music and film collaborations. Nubuke Foundation is a member of the Arts Collaboratory Network.

Arts Collaboratory

Arts Collaboratory (AC) is a network of twenty-five diverse arts organisations in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Europe. AC is a trans-local ecosystem, focusing on art practices and processes of social change and working with communities within and beyond the arts.

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