Art in Aktion in Bolgatanga.

21 June-7 July 2006. Contemporary women artists from Ghana and Burkina Faso are at the Sand Gardens Hotel in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region of Ghana for a two-week international art workshop organised by the Accra-based organisation Art in Aktion. The workshop aims to encourage the exchange of ideas as well as tackling the issue of preserving and developing traditional forms of art in Ghana, including murals. Participants include members of the Sirigu Womens Organization for Pottery and Art (SWOPA), who have successfully revived a tradition of wall painting, pottery and basket-making, which has existed in northern Ghana for hundreds of years. Round table discussions moderated by renowned Ghanaian artists will attempt to identify problems faced by women artists and how best these can be overcome. Participating artists are Carole Ouedrago, Francoise Derbeque, Marie Donkor and Marie Blanche from Burkina Faso and Ayompoka Akayuure, Abisiboba Nyaaba, Fuastina Ayambire, Asokipala Aberinya and Adwoa Amoah from Ghana. Established by the young artist Samuel Olou, Art in Aktion is at the forefront of the promotion of art in Ghana through the organization of workshops, seminars and exhibitions including Art on the Street, a project that involves artists working at street corners to help demystify the act of creating artworks. Professor Joe Nkrumah (former conservator of the National Museum), Kofi Dawson, Akwele Suma Glory, Kwadwo Ani (Art in Aktion) and John Owoo (independent curator) are co-coordinating the workshop, which is sponsored by the French embassy in Accra (by John Owoo).