Koyo Kouoh Fellowship Launched by Art Basel to Honor Late Curator

Art Basel has launched the Koyo Kouoh Fellowship, a three-year program designed to support up-and-coming curators, writers, and cultural professionals in attending the Basel fair. This initiative honors Koyo Kouoh, a Cameroonian Swiss curator who died in May 2025 while contributing to the Venice Biennale. Kouoh first engaged with Art Basel in 2001 and later joined the jury for the first Art Basel Awards. The fellowship, funded by Art Basel and created with the Raw Material Company she founded in Dakar in 2008, offers travel costs, a stipend, visa help, and mentorship. Aisha Aliyu-Bima, a Nigerian curator, is the inaugural fellow. The jury includes Marie Hélène Pereira, Rasha Salti, Otobong Nkanga, and Greer Valley. Candidates were chosen from Kouoh’s initiatives, with an open call scheduled for next year and discussions about possibly extending the fellowship.