We have been invited to present our work and film ‘Tropical Ontology’ at the Cluster of Research Excellence in Creative Economies in Africa

Annual conference.

It will be online for anyone that likes to participate and link will be shared soon to join.

Tropical Ontology is a collaborative exhibition by Dr. Sechaba Maape, Adey Omotade, and Emalohi Iruobe, exploring humanity’s deep connection to the equator as its original home.

Maape’s AI-generated visuals depict speculative architectures merging Pancho Guedes’ influences with Hyper-Essentialised motifs, interrogating African identity through contemporary representation. Omotade’s “Post Afrobeat” soundscapes—highly percussive compositions inspired by Yoruba heritage—create a sonic dialogue with these visuals, transforming space into an ontological tropic. Emalohi and Adey present video works exploring Yoruba ritual practices, further expanding the exhibition’s themes of rhythm, migration, and climate as an ontological force.

Together, Tropical Ontology challenges colonial frontier-making and proposes a conceptual return to the equator, a philosophy of warm weather, sunshine, rhythm, and breeze.

Sculpture in Slide 1- Ire Aiku by Emalohi Iruobe