Join us for Closing Reception of Mobolaji Ayeni’s Solo Exhibition, CARAVAN, on Saturday, May 2 from 12-5PM with a special pop-up listening session with Asante’s Hi-Life.
Detroit’s first hospitality-led cultural destination dedicated entirely to the African diaspora — a record library, craft cocktail bar, African bistro, and live performance stage under one roof, Asante’s is a Top 4 Finalist in Hatch Detroit, the flagship location is coming to Detroit.
Rooted in the golden era of global Black music spanning African, Caribbean, and Afro-Latin sounds from the 1950s through the 90s, every detail is curated with intention from the vinyl collection to the menu, to the live programming.
Founded by Addofio Addo — the creative force behind Afro Nation, Afro Future, Savage X Fenty, and the Recording Academy’s arrival in Detroit, currently in residence at Baru Detroit, building the community one experience at a time.
CARAVAN explores the movement of people, ideas, and cultural practices across time and geography, with a focus on journeys from pre-colonial West Africa to present-day North America. It is a visual and narrative exploration of continuity and transformation: the caravans we join, literally and figuratively, which transform our lives and the lives of our descendants. But it is also about how we ourselves become resources to be traded, led or loved.
From the artist-
“In this exhibition, a layered body of work that honors ancestral histories, contemporary diasporic identity and the human person. The conceptual framework builds on the metaphor of a caravan as both physical and symbolic: a moving community, a vehicle of exchange, and a vessel of memory,” he explains.
As a 2025 Emerging Artist Fellow, he was chosen for his artistic excellence and strong exhibition concept through an open call process and selected by a small professional arts jury.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Mobolaji Ayeni is a Nigerian-American visual artist, designer, and writer based in Detroit, MI. His work explores memory, identity, and the strength of bonds between people. Drawing from family photos, human history and cultural objects, he creates visual narratives that reflect on intimate and collective experiences.
