Efie Gallery in Dubai is reshaping contemporary African art.

Efie Gallery, opened in Dubai in 2021 by siblings Kwame and Kobi Mintah with their mother Valentina, represents artists from Africa and its diaspora and has staged major Middle East solo shows for Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons and Abdoulaye Konaté.

Efie Gallery opened in Dubai in 2021 and has grown into a multiroom space that aims to broaden how people see African art. The gallery was founded by Ghanaian siblings Kwame and Kobi Mintah with their mother, Valentina, and it intentionally places work by artists from Africa and its diaspora in the Middle East. Efie has mounted debut Middle East solo exhibitions for established figures and also supports emerging artists through shows, residencies and related programming. The founders also maintain a large vinyl collection and run film screenings, a library and a cafe alongside exhibitions. Key details: - Efie was launched in 2021 by Kwame and Kobi Mintah and their mother, Valentina, to showcase artists from Africa and the diaspora in the Middle East. - The gallery opened a permanent space in March 2022 at Al Khayat Avenue and later moved to a two-story, 4,400-square-foot space in Alserkal Avenue with a 1,500-square-foot main exhibition area and high ceilings. - Efie has hosted the Middle East debut solo shows of Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons (April 2025) and Abdoulaye Konaté (October 2024), and previously presented El Anatsui's first Dubai solo and a gallery show of J.K. Bruce-Vanderpuije (December 2023). - The gallery represents artists including Slawn, Yaw Owusu, Maggie Otieno and Aïda Muluneh, and had Muluneh's solo show on view through April 5 as reported. - Programming includes a residency program, the Rekord Gallery of thousands of vinyl and shellac records collected by the founders, film screenings in collaboration with Bootleg Griot, a library and a cafe. Summary: Efie Gallery seeks to change narratives about what counts as African art by presenting a wide geographic and generational range of artists and by situating that work in Dubai's growing art districts. Upcoming plans noted in reporting include the exhibition "In Abstracto, In Concreto" scheduled for May 21 and participation in Art Dubai (reported as postponed to mid-May), and work by Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons is also noted for inclusion at this year's Venice Biennale.