Kibibi Ajanku makes and presents ethnically charged art. Her passion embodies the thrust of the African Diaspora. Kibibi’s creativity is the ongoing and ever evolving effort of her life journey. Her work is eclectic and innovative. It is ancient while at the same time new-world and always changing. Ajanku’s muscle as a visual artist spans from contemporary fine art to village inspired craft, and the performance. Her artistry is layered with… and entrenched in… indigenous folkways. Her work embodies research, identity, and the gathering of elements of African retention, in hopes of evoking intuitive memories that reach back into ancestral histories and stories that impact the here and the now.
 
Kibibi Ajanku’s passion for art began early. She was nurtured by “grandma’s hands” as she sat at the knees of a quilt making maternal grandmother and soon followed on the heels of fashion forward seamstress aunties. This fueled an artistic journey as an exploration and execution of an indigenous aesthetic. Ajanku is empowered by international training and workshops: adire fabric design in Osogbo, Nigeria; tapestries in Theis, Senegal; adinkra fabric printing and kente weaving in Kumasi, Ghana; mud cloth acquisitions from the Mali railway; embroidery work in Medina, Senegal; and Orisha attire in Havana, Cuba. Ajanku has traveled the African diaspora to study, teach, and perform with many textile masters. Ajanku believes that when presented properly, art is the perfect vehicle to move forward into greater intercultural awareness for the global community.

Kibibi Ajanku attended Morgan State University, received an MFA in Curatorial Practice from Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA); and currently, Ajanku is an Educator in Coppin State University Fine Arts Department and the MICA Fibers Department. Ajanku believes that when presented properly, art is the perfect vehicle to move forward into greater intercultural awareness for the global community.

MEET THE ARTIST