Galleria Barovier&Toso
Ibrahim Mahama “A Shea Garden”

Galleria Barovier&Toso, in collaboration with Apalazzogallery, presents “A Shea Garden”, a solo exhibition by Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama, on view from 4 May to 18 July at the gallery’s pop-up space in Dorsoduro, Venice. The project emerges from the encounter between Mahama’s exploration of materials, memory and the traces left by economic and social systems, and the tradition of Murano glassmaking.

At the heart of the exhibition are traditional clay vessels from northern Ghana, objects connected to everyday life and agricultural cycles, once used to store grain and other foods or to feed poultry. The title refers to the shea tree, a vital resource in the Ghanaian savannah, whose harvesting and processing are traditionally carried out by women and associated with knowledge passed down from generation to generation.

In his collaboration with Galleria Barovier&Toso, Mahama translates these everyday forms into Murano glass, radically transforming their material nature: from the opacity of clay to the transparency of glass, from functional objects to sculptural forms. The transition between the two materials becomes a reflection on memory, loss and displacement, while bringing into dialogue two distant traditions – those of northern Ghana and Murano – both rooted in artisanal knowledge passed down over time and today confronted with profound economic and social transformations.