Koyo Kouoh RIP

a screenshot of an instagram post of an elegant Black woman with thin, straight braids in a white dress, with her arms crossed over her crossed legs, sitting on a low bench in an art space, with several elements of a painting behind, presumably it is an official portrait of koyo kouoh, the director and chief curator of zeitz mocaa, the south african contemporary art museum which posted it to instagram while announcing news of kouoh's sudden death

Extraordinary and sad news, that Koyo Kouoh, most recently of Zeitz MOCAA, and the curator of the next Venice Biennale, has died. Aruna d’Souza posted the Zeitz MOCAA Instagram announcement on bluesky.

Having never seen a show of Kouoh’s, I found the most insight and inspiration from her two-part interview in 2024 with Charlotte Burns for Schwartzman &’s What if…!? podcast. I’ve listened to it multiple times since.

Just a person of extraordinary and urgent thinking and action, now gone.

The Art World: What If…?! Season 2, 9, Koyo Kouoh, Part 1 [schwartzmanand]
The Art World: What If…?! Season 2, 10, Koyo Kouoh, Part 2