Across Addis Ababa, Lagos, and Dubai, three remarkable women are shaping how African art is exhibited, collected and experienced.
Addis Fine Art, ART x Lagos, and Efie Gallery are institutions redefining access and strengthening the commercial landscape of African contemporary art. Led by Rakeb Sile, Tokini Peterside-Schwebig, and Valentina Mintah, they are creating sustainable pathways for artists to thrive locally and internationally.
Collectively, their mission is to nurture emerging artists, showcase local talent on the global stage, and cultivate a sustainable ecosystem where creativity and commerce move in step.
Here, the tastemakers invite us into their world.
Tokini Peterside-Schwebig
Founder, ART x Lagos (Nigeria)
@tokinipeterside
Blending her talents for business and creativity, Tokini launched ART x Lagos in 2016. Since then, it’s become a leading premier art fair in West Africa, spanning art, music, and film.
YLA: From law to the arts – what drove the shift?
Tokini: In 2007, after completing law school, I took a gap year to figure out how to merge my diverse interests. I’d been volunteering in fashion, publishing, and even considering entertainment law as an undergraduate, and as I split my time between London and Lagos, I recognised how underrepresented African culture is globally.
I first took on a communications role at Moët Hennessy within the LVMH Group, and became Head of Marketing. That led me to launch a consulting firm to help local culture entrepreneurs and luxury brands grow, such as ALARA and Maki Oh. I began to collect art in those years and met dozens of artists in Lagos whose circumstances I grew to understand and desired to support.
In 2015, I decided to pursue an MBA at INSEAD, as I wanted deeper business knowledge, having found myself at the intersection of creativity and business, and it was there that ART X Lagos was born.
YLA: What makes an artwork compelling?
Tokini: A compelling artwork moves you, challenges you, or transports you somewhere new. It should provoke thought and spark conversation. I’m drawn to work that carries a sense of authenticity and purpose, pieces that reflect an artist’s deep convictions and connection to their context. Recently, I’ve been profoundly inspired by the archive of J.D. ’Okhai Ojeikere, which has thousands of images of Nigerians from the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s.
YLA: Your artists to watch in 2026?
Tokini: I’m consistently inspired by artists who are redefining the boundaries of African contemporary art. Those who blend tradition with innovation, who are rooted in their local context yet globally engaged. Nengi Omuku, who presented a special project at our 10th anniversary fair, is a great example. She paints on sanyan, a tightly woven Yoruba fabric and addresses heritage and inner psychology through her art and her charity, The Art of Healing.
YLA: What’s your biggest highlight, and what’s next?
Tokini: Reaching our 10th edition was no small feat. Standing on that stage on the night of the VIP Preview, looking out at a packed room, I had to pause and take it all in. It immediately took me back to our opening weekend in 2016. To feel that same energy in the room, nine years later, affirmed that we have created something special. Looking ahead, my hope is that ART X continues to grow and remain a significant contributor to the advancement of the African narrative.
Rakeb Sile –
Founder, Addis Fine Art (Ethiopia)
@rakebsile
Born in the US and raised between Ethiopia and the UK, Rakeb is the co-founder of Addis Fine Art. Inspired by her own journey of self-discovery and identity, she founded her gallery with business partner Mesai Haileleul in Addis Ababa in 2016.
YLA: How do you select artists to represent?
Rakeb: This project was an ode and dedication to the artists that Mesai and I love, collected, and have come to know over time. We wanted to showcase artists who have been working for decades in obscurity and hadn’t had support – locally or otherwise – to benefit from their creativity. Broadly, what we always look for is an artist who has clarity, dedication, and a unique visual language.
YLA: What makes a compelling artwork?
Rakeb: In any creative industry, you’re trying to engage someone’s emotions. That’s what artists do best. A compelling artwork can move you, make you think and question. It can challenge you and teach you things. It creates a feeling – and a conversation.
YLA: Your artists to watch in 2026?
Rakeb: Merikokeb Berhanu, Tesfaye Urgessa, Tizta Berhanu, and Tesfaye Bekele. Tadesse Mesfin is a unique one because he’s the link between the modernists and the contemporary artists we work with. He’s been a professor and instructor to most of these artists. His work is beautiful and important for art history.
YLA: What’s next for Addis Fine Art?
Rakeb: 2026 is going to be our pivot year in terms of working differently. Expect more collaborations with other galleries to ensure that artists transcend our gallery and go further. We’re also setting up a foundation to continue developing new artists and we’re publishing our 10-year anniversary book, 10 Years of Addis Fine Art: A Decade of Discovery. It will come with an archive website.
Valentina Mintah
Founder, Efie Gallery (Dubai)
@efiegallery
Based in Dubai, by way of Ghana, Valentina founded Efie Gallery with her two sons, Kwame and Kobi, in 2021. The gallery blends music, art and literature, creating a multi-disciplinary communal space inspired by African traditions of gathering.
YLA: What makes an artwork compelling?
Valentina: It’s always compelling to see works that challenge stereotypes that persist around contemporary African art, which is still too often boxed into preconceived notions or limited to certain aesthetics.
YLA: How do you select artists?
Valentina: One of our goals is to highlight artists who are globally established but haven’t had solo presentations in this region. The shows we hosted with El Anatsui, Abdoulaye Konaté, and Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons were their first in the Middle East. We want to show artists who set the tone for lyrical, bold, and expansive conversations.
YLA: Your artists to watch in 2026?
Valentina: Maggie Otieno from Kenya, who will present her first solo exhibition at Efie Gallery in April. The exhibition features recent works created during a residency at El Anatsui Studio in Temu, Ghana. We are also excited about Luke Agada, Tunji Adeniyi-Jones, Ludovic Nkoth, and Naila Opiangah, who feature in our upcoming exhibition In Abstracto, In Concreto: On Memory and Presence, opening late in May and curated by Brice Arsène Yonkeu.
YLA: What’s your biggest highlight, and future vision?
Valentina: We hoped people would leave Efie Gallery wanting to return, and they have. It’s rewarding to see the same faces coming to the gallery again and again, often bringing new visitors with them. We want to continue representing and advancing diverse artists of African origin while fostering cross-cultural artistic dialogue in the Middle East and beyond.
