The Art World: What If...?! with Kemi Ilesanmi

Kemi Ilesanmi is planting seeds for the future. Three years ago, she stepped back from running The Laundromat Project, took a gap year in which she visited 13 countries, and came back full of ideas and possibilities. Now she's an independent arts worker. A diaspora weaver. A connector of people and worlds. She says that five core values drive her work: Assume abundance. Foster connections. Multiply knowledge. Center joy. Manifest dreams. In this third conversation with host Charlotte Burns, Kemi reflects on building sustainable institutions, the women who shaped contemporary art across Africa, and why she believes in looking for "new suns" even in difficult times, sharing insights about the projects and people inspiring her now. The ecosystem needs tending, she says. The seeds need space to grow. What if we stopped trying to do it alone?

You can listen to The Art World: What If...?! with Kemi Ilesanmi online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

The Art World: What If...?! with Kemi Ilesanmi is an episode from In Other Words by Allan Schwartzman.

This episode is 01:08:28 long.

This episode was published on Aug 28, 2025.

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