For its latest exhibition on racism in football, Berlin’s Haus der Kulturen der Welt enlisted British-Nigerian artist Yinka Ilori, known for his striking and symbolic installations.
This cultural center, focused on contemporary art exploring non-European cultures and societal issues, commissioned a summer pavilion designed for reflection on migration, discrimination, and solidarity ahead of UEFA’s EURO 2024 championship. Ilori responded with an exuberant and thematic creation. His life-sized timber abacus features West African calabash gourds with mirrored surfaces to prompt self-reflection.
Ilori utilized yellow and green-painted timber for the structure’s circular platform and canopy. The calabash walls are unpainted on one side, resembling wooden beads of an abacus, while those supported by the canopy are painted green.
From the outside, Ilori’s threaded gourds may appear like fans in a stadium. Inside, they invite visitors to examine the dual nature of spectator sports. The space, part temple and part examination room, unites people in a shared purpose while also highlighting the antisocial behavior that can taint the joy of the game. From the stepped interior perspective, such behavior becomes impossible to ignore, hence the pavilion’s name, Reflection in Numbers.
The pavilion will remain on-site alongside the exhibition “Ballet of the Masses – on Football and Catharsis,” which runs until 10 July.
