Zilijifa II

2026Full-scale diesel locomotive, enamelled metal headpans, steel structures16 × 4.3 metres

Ibrahim Mahama’s practice examines labour, trade, and the circulation of goods through monumental installations made from industrial and everyday materials. Zilijifa II (2026) extends his long-term engagement with Ghana’s railway system, originally developed under British colonial rule to link resource-rich inland regions with coastal ports. At its centre is a decommissioned diesel locomotive, reassembled as a sculptural installation that reflects on industry, labour, and extraction. Presented in Abu Dhabi, the work creates a dialogue between historical transport infrastructures and contemporary port economies shaped by the global movement of goods. Like the industrial remnants that recur throughout Mahama’s practice, the locomotive becomes a vessel of memory, its weathered surfaces bearing traces of repair, circulation, and transformation.

Artist's Biography

Ibrahim Mahama

Accra, Kumasi and Tamale, Ghana

Ibrahim Mahama is an artist whose practice centres on monumental, site-specific installations using materials of labour and trade, including jute sacks, timber, and industrial remnants. Through collaborative projects, he transforms these materials to examine global economies, colonial histories, and the circulation of goods and people. Mahama founded the Savannah Centre for Contemporary Art (SCCA), Red Clay Studio, and Nkrumah Volini. His work has been exhibited at documenta 14 (2017); the 56th Venice Biennale (2015); Centre Pompidou, Paris (2020); Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna (2025); and the 35th São Paulo Biennial (2023); with a solo exhibition at Fondation Cartier, Paris, forthcoming in 2026. Mahama studied fine art at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, earning a PhD (2015). He received the Prince Claus Award (2020), Sam Gilliam Award (2024), and Gold Award at the inaugural Art Basel Awards (2025). In 2025, he became the first African artist to top ArtReview’s ‘Power 100’ list.

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