Alexia Traore

CONTEXT 

Lights of Congo is the continuity and development of the Lumières de Brazzaville cultural cycle, initiated by Alexia Traore from June to August 2024 after two years of preparation/research between Paris and Brazzaville.
The concept: to resonate the figures of choreographic artists in their daily creative environment and to promote Congolese poetic repertoires, through the visual medium. Pay tribute to the Congolese choreographic scene in its diversity and creativity, in the two largest cities of the country and beyond.

A complete cultural cycle, Lumières du Congo combines exhibitions, shows, performances, professional workshops, and transmission workshops for young audiences and audiences far from culture, in close collaboration with a network of partner structures in Congo and France.

REFERENCE ARTISTS 

Alexia Traore

Dancer, visual artist, author (poetry-storytelling), photographer Her transdisciplinary creations combine traditional repertoire sources (Egypt-Afghanistan) with contemporary aesthetics (exploration of urban spaces through wandering and in situ).
Creator of the Lumières de Brazzaville cultural cycle (2022-2024) and the Lumières du Congo project, explorations and dance/photography exhibition with Gatien Brunel Bitsangou.

Creations supported by the CMTRA (Noor, 2018), Les Chantiers de Babel (2019) Winner of Young Contemporary Talents (2021), partnership with the French Institute of Brazzaville (My body remembers, 2024) She is artistic director of Cie Dayma , labeled Pass Culture since 2023

Gatien Brunel Bitsangou

Dancer, choreographer, videographer, photographer His creations are at the same time a tribute to the ancestral repertoires of the Congo, to hip hop culture and to contemporary aesthetics.

Noted for numerous original creations (including Tunga, partnership with IFC Brazzaville) which traveled to Congo and the African continent (Benin). He is artistic director of Cie Kubama.

Alexia and Gatien have been collaborating since 2022 and have led several achievements in the cultural and social field, with different partners in Congo and France:

A trio You won’t even see the Earth, scheduled for the Tokomi Performance Biennial (July 2023) and the IFC Brazzaville Free Air Wednesdays (July 2024) A cycle of cultural and solidarity actions (children aged 7 to 12 ) in 2023, Dances without borders (supported by the Town Hall of the 18th, Dotation Culturelle de Proximité, Paris) Partners: ENCRED, Diangouaya Art Center A cycle of dance/performance exhibitions Lumières de Brazzaville, in partnership with the French Institute du Congo, the ClassPro_Culture Photography Center, the Les Lucioles cultural space, and ENCRED.

FIRST RESEARCH SESSIONS

The photographic and performative research which will lead to the 2025 exhibitions began in August 2024 in Brazzaville (Bacongo district, Ateliers Sahm, La Cataracte site) and Pointe Noire (Pointe Noire train station, Pointe Indienne site)