Biography
Born 1981 in Ho, Ghana, Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi [ aka crazinisT artisT] is a trans woman with the pronoun sHit if not She. Va-Bene currently lives in Kumasi, Ghana but works internationally as a multidisciplinary “artivist”, curator, philanthropist and a mentor across several countries. She is the founder and artistic director of crazinisT artisT studiO (TTO), Our Railway Cinema Gallery (ORCG) and perfocraZe International Artists Residency (pIAR) which aimed at radicalising the arts and promoting exchange between international and local artists, activists, researchers, curators, and critical thinkers. As a performer and installation artist, crazinisT investigates gender stereotypes, prejudices, queerness, identity politics and conflicts, sexual stigma and their consequences for marginalised groups or individuals. With rituals and a gender-fluid persona, She employs her own body as a thought-provoking tool in performances, photography, video, and installations, ‘life-and-live-art’ confronting issues such as disenfranchisement, injustice, violence, objectification, internalised oppression, anti blackness, systemic indoctrination and many more.
crazinisT has performed and exhibited across the globe including countries such as Nigeria, Togo, Ghana, Switzerland, South Africa, Germany, Netherlands, Cape Verde, USA, Spain, Brazil, France, Sweden, Hungary, Belgium, Luxembourg, Japan and UK.
sHit has also been featured in several, publications and magazines such as the I-D Vice London, I-D Vice Dutch, Financial times, King Kong Magazine, CCQ London, Maimi Rails, ‘Freeflowingvisuals’, TRT WORD Film Documentary, This is Africa, Art Ghana, Lost At E Minor, CNN, The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Die Tageszeitung (TAZ), Horizonte da Cena, Radio FRO, Reuters, Hyperallergic etc
EXHIBITIONS/PERFORMANCES
LIST OF EXHIBITIONS/PERFORMANCES
2023
- Sacred Space/Sacred Bodies, Uppsala Sweden (Coming soon, April 27th)
- Thy-Queerdom-Cum, Antwerp, Belgium (Upcoming, May 20th)
2022
- "Before Dawn' VFDalston, London UK
- Kall for Healing, Birmingham UK
- Ata-Ku, Documenta 15, kasel Germany
- Reading and moderation, Gorki Theatre, Berlin Germany
- the KOVENANT II, Berlin, Germany
- INTI-mate HealinG, Berlin Germany
- the KOVENANT, Berlin, Germany
- Kall for Healing, Bern Switzerland
- INTI-mate HealinG II, Bern Switzerland
- My body, My Colour, Bern Switzerland
- The Biggest Monument of Love, Bern switzerland
2021
- Un(EARth)ing w-E-story, inventory Platform, UK
- gray-healings-grey-bodies, Santarcangelo Festival, Italy
- Holier-Than-Thou, Kumasi, public performance
2020
- Emergency CODE: pAUSE and pULSE, Forecast Platform, Berlin
- uNTAMED reALITIES, Online performance, Out of Site Chicago
- Black is rED, Forecast_Emergency CODE: pAUSE and pULSE
- I KAn’t brEAThe, Forecast_Emergency CODE: pAUSE and pULSE
- Oga LANDLORD…, Intervention, Kumasi, Ghana
2019
- RItual reALITies, Slought, University of Pennsylvania, USA
- WouNded wouNds IV, Centro Niemeyer, Aviles Spain
- aʋa_Si_mi, Oviedo University, Spain
- dZikudZikui-aBiku-aBiikus III, Black Art Festival, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
- Strikethrough III, Black Art Festival, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
- tO liVE, we dIED, Camargo Foundation, Cassis France
- Table of Negotiation collaboration with John Herman, Chale Wote, Accra
- Borderless Ocean, Collaboration with Gloria Godinez, Chale Wote, Accra
- Strikethrough, FIT Rio 2019, Rio Preto, Brazil
- agbanWu, FIT Rio 2019, Rio Preto, Brazil
- dZikudZikui-aBiku-aBiikus, FIT Rio 2019, Rio Preto, Brazil
- Open source Performance, interval 10_PAErche Essen, Germany
- DONOTSAVEME, interval 10_PAErche Essen, Germany
- Intimate death, HFBK, Hamburg, Germany
- Lamentation. Kumasi Ghana
- nkwabiaahia _allLIVESmatter, Kumasi, Ghana
- WouNded wouNds III, online performance, Translucent, crazinisT artisT studiO,
- WouNded wouNds II, White Out Project NRW-Forum Dusseldorf
- tranSFiguration, perfocraZe International Artists Residency
2018
- “Voyage” Mindelact Festival, Cape Verde
- “Strikethrough”, steakhouse, London UK
- Performance Project and workshop, Cologne, Germany (In progress)
- “ouTcasT” The Rising’ ]Performance Space[ Folkestone, UK
- “The oatH_b” Munich, Germany
- ‘Untitled’ Berlin, Germany
- froZen series LagosPhotos Festival
- ‘the oatH’ Performance Art Festival Oerliker Park Zurich,
- “agbaWnu” at Chalewote Art Festival Accra Gh.
- ‘Lying awake’ Watermill Centre, New York, USA
- Passing Through-Act of Radical Empathy, Gallery 1957, Accra Ghana
- forgotten truth, participating in “Past Tells” a group show at Alliance Francaise Kumasi Ghana, curated by Michael Babanawo
- dZikudZikui-aBiku-aBikus, Oduom, Kumasi Ghana
- wouNded-wouNd, Paradiso, Amsterdam, Netherlands
2017
- How The Stars Were Made, Legon Botanical Garden, Accra, Ghana (A collaborative project (AfriQueer) with Drama for Life AFRICA Project from South Africa.)
- nativeimmiGrant III – efiewurasuame, ICAF2017 Iwaya, Lagos Nigeria
- inthemiddleofNowhere, Ruffi Haus Munich Germany
- The specter[less] specters - find the X, Haus Der Kunst, Munich, Germany
- nativeimmiGrant II, Villa Waldberta, Munich Germany
- iNisheahim, Villa Waldberta, Munich Germany
- stillDeath, Break Through #19 Munich Germany
- Bond[H2o], Duo performance by crazinisT artisT [Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi] & John Herman CHALE WOTE Street Art Festival 2017 'WATA MATA' James Fort Prison, Accra, Ghana
- nativeimmiGrant, Performance at the Arts Council of the African Studies Association (ACASA) 17th Triennial Symposium 2017
- illiGalbody II, Black Star International Art Festival, Accra
- nazaKU, Accra, (Orderly Disorderly, Museum of Science and Technology, Accra, Ghana by blaxTARLINES, Kumasi)
- IlleGalbody, KNUST, Kumasi
- lettertotheChuRch I, KNUST Catholic Church, Kumasi
- lettertotheChuRch II, Roman Hill Catholic Church, Kumasi
- Rituals of Becoming, Gallery 1957, Accra, Ghana
2016
- rE·gen·er·at[e] Bone 19 Performance Art Festival, Bern
- chocolate kiss, Duo performance with Jazmin Taco, Schlachthaus, Bern Switzerland
- myBodyisaPrison... KNUST, Kumasi Ghana
- ‘frozen’ Cornfields in Accra’, (Museum of Science and Technology, Accra, Ghana by blaxTARLINES, Kumasi
- X in REd, ‘if you love me’... exhibition, Kumasi, Ghana
- ‘eAt me...’, performance with voluntary participating Students from the Department of Painting and Sculpture, KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana
- reThinking-naZa, collaborative performance with the Security Department of KNUST, Ghana
2013-2015: https://www.crazinistartist.com/curriculum-vitae/