The cultural entrepreneur is carving out creative spaces for young African talent in France through her artist agency, Undiscovered Canvas.
Nomaza Nongqunga-Coupez is a South African cultural entrepreneur based in Mandelieu-La Napoule, a town in the South of France, where she founded and currently operates the artist agency and residency Undiscovered Canvas. Since its inception in 2017, the platform has provided opportunities for young emerging African visual artists to promote their work in galleries across Europe and in South Africa. Through this exposure, young African creatives are afforded access to new skills, exposure and increased visibility in prestigious art markets, aiming to catapult them to international success.
A past member of France’s Presidential Council for Africa, Nongqunga-Coupez aims to cultivate cross-border links by bridging the gap between both regions through the arts, creativity and culture.
Nongqunga-Coupez’s tenacity and dedication to overcome her past adversities while growing up in apartheid South Africa fueled her motivation to uplift and empower artists who have also been marginalized and sidelined, thus giving power to those she calls the “underdogs.”
AYO sat down with Nongqunga-Coupez to discuss how Undiscovered Canvas unearths and discovers “hidden gems” in the creative world and why it is important to support and amplify emerging African visual artists across the world.
The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Talk to us about Undiscovered Canvas. How was it conceptualized?
Undiscovered Canvas aims to be the agency representing the best creatives from Africa. Our mission is to uplift and drive investment to African creatives.
When I arrived in the south of France in 2009, I quickly realized that I was in a country that was tourism driven. I saw that people came for the museums, theatres and galleries. Tourism drove the cultural aspects [of French cities] and French creatives were able to live out their creativity because tourism was so high. So I saw the economic potential there.
When I would go to galleries in France, it was very rare to see creative artworks from Africa. I also realized that it was established creatives from the continent who would attend or host these exhibits. Young, emerging African creatives who had just as much talent did not have that opportunity. I decided to create a platform representing young talents and introduce them into the European markets.
Undiscovered Canvas stems from what I call the “underdog concept”; I’m searching for those hidden gems, and then I give them a platform to show their work.
Another major reason I started the platform was to educate. French people’s understanding of the African continent is extremely limited. I wanted to use the platform to educate people through creativity. So I would bring creatives that spoke about the new South Africa, or what it meant to be a Black man growing up in apartheid South Africa. You start getting into the transference of knowledge. You start getting into what it means to live in a country that has been broken. The dialogue is easier to be broken down through art. The artists have got the capacity to put it out there in such a way that we, as observers, can identify with it.
How has your personal background influenced your desire to create Undiscovered Canvas?
I grew up during the apartheid era in South Africa, so that meant I grew up segregated. I grew up in a township. I went to a black school, and I was taught by black teachers. The only time that I would see a white person would be when I went to the city to buy food with my parents, so for most of my childhood I don’t remember seeing or interacting with white faces.
I understood that I had limitations, that I was in an environment where not everything was opened up for me. You could either be a doctor, a nurse or a teacher, but nothing else existed beyond that for me. As a child, it creates an inferiority complex, because you grow up thinking that you are the lowest of the low in society.
The first time I had an opportunity to intellectually compare myself to a white person was when I arrived at university. I studied biomedical technology, which is not an easy course, but I could understand and grasp the concepts. I could grasp them even better [than my white peers]. Then there was an awakening in me, an awakening that I could do a whole lot of other things in life post-apartheid. So that really opened my mind.
My upbringing impacted my motivations to create Undiscovered Canvas, as well. I call myself the underdog; so whatever it is that I do, I always look for that person who is the best, but does not have the opportunity to be so because that’s what I know. I know for a fact that I am here and I’m able to do what I do because other people gave me opportunities.
Photo: courtesy of Nomaza Nongqunga-Coupez
Why is it important for you that African artists showcase their work in the European art world?
It’s because the market is already mature in Europe. A 2008 study by the United Nations broke down the creative industries in the world and the role of Africa within the global [creative] economy. Africa’s share is less than one percent. Europe is the second-largest market for creative and cultural industries. So for us to be able to have an [African] creative in Europe, it means that we’re going to a market that people are already investing in. For example, if we were to do an exhibition in South Africa, but realize that South Africans are not art buyers, who is going to buy the art there? You need to go where the market is if you really want to improve the livelihood of people. It’s extremely important for African creative industries to be able to go to the markets that are already consuming African creatives. I know that if I do an exhibition in Europe, the artwork is going to be bought, because the market there is mature.
There’s a growing art market in West Africa and South Africa. Wouldn’t you say it’s important to engage with those markets as well?
It’s very important. You can’t neglect one for the other. But there’s another aspect that we’re forgetting: consumers’ mindset. My artists were not even seen in South Africa. It’s only when I put them on the international market that they get calls from South African galleries to showcase their work. They get calls from South African buyers wanting to buy their art because the buyers saw the artist exhibited in Europe.
When artists are exhibiting in a market that is regarded as “esteemed,” people see the art as being more valuable. But I know for a fact that when you exhibit at the Dakar Art Biennale or Art X Lagos then people see you as valuable because you’ve exhibited at very prestigious events.
It’s a multi-path business model that has its own pros and cons. For me, all of them are necessary. Your strategy can’t just be, Okay, now I’m going to stay in Africa and focus on emerging markets, or I’m going to concentrate on Europe, or The States or Tokyo. You can’t do that. You really need to open up as many doors as possible because we’re talking about the export of goods. Things gain so much value when they’re exhibited internationally, so why wouldn’t you want [African artists] to go out of their countries so that they can eventually funnel money back into their respective countries?
What are you looking for when you select an artist to represent?
They must be a young, emerging artist from and currently based on the continent. They must be ambitious. That person wants to grow, wants more and will push themselves to get more. I also like artists who are using innovative ways to produce their artwork with technology or use materials that are different from what you would normally see. I especially like artists who are invested in reusability and sustainability. If you’re an artist that is multidisciplinary, that is of great interest to me too.
What does working with Undiscovered Canvas do for artists?
Your value will increase when you’re represented by us. My artists—the ones that have worked with us from the beginning—their artwork gains at least 100 percent more in value yearly.
This happens because artists’ works are introduced to new markets and a new collector base. The exhibitions I curate are not exhibitions that are typically done in most galleries. Most galleries participate in art fairs. I’ve never done an art fair, but because I’m based in South of France, in an area already with a built-in elite clientele, the artwork gets seen by some of the biggest collectors in the world—bankers, corporate collections, insurance companies. Our artists also get magazine and television exposure.
How else does working with Undiscovered Canvas benefit your artists?
The residency aims to increase the mobility of African artists. A lot of African artists don’t have the opportunity to travel overseas for a residency. A residency not only opens up your eyes into what others are doing, but creates relationships with artists, curators, and gallerists. At the same time, collaborations also happen when you’re in a residency with other artists from different countries.
Our artists arrive in France and live in an apartment provided by our partner gallerist. I organize a studio which provides the artist with studio access. Last year, I hosted a South African artist and he was able to live in Vallauris for six months.
Our artists also get to be mentored by other artists who teach news skills and collaborate on new works.
We had a visiting artist who wanted to work with ceramics because he had never done ceramic artworks professionally. He ended up doing a beautiful exquisite ceramics series with two well-known French artists. I’m selling that series for thousands and thousands of euros.
What is the future for Undiscovered Canvas?
That’s a really tough question, because when I really think about how I started, I would have never thought that I would be where I am today. I would like Undiscovered Canvas to be a platform that enables the promotion of young creatives from Africa. I would like it to be known as the agency that brings the best talent from the continent. I would like the platform to be a company that creates awareness and increases the value of African creatives within various African communities, so that our communities can understand the importance of African creatives. I want to build awareness about how important our creative industries are in contributing to our GDP and our economies. Africans inspire creativity. If we’re able to see creativity as an asset or as a commodity, we’ll realize the true richness of our arts.
