Contemporary Visual Culture and Art

2026 Vol.2 No.1

YouTube Episteme under Algorithmic Governance: A Mixed-Methods Study of Clickbait Comedy

426 (Abstract) 345 (Download) PDF
Abstract:

Michel Foucault’s concept of power/knowledge explains how institutions historically controlled knowledge. In the digital age, new epistemic structures have emerged, where YouTubers, representing diverse voices, appear to democratize knowledge and influence public beliefs. However, this study argues that YouTube clickbait comedians, through sensational tactics designed to maximize clicks and vie... More >>

Community Responses to Kannywood Hausa Films in Northern Nigeria: A Cultural and Societal Perspective

917 (Abstract) 307 (Download) PDF
Abstract:

"Kannywood", a term referring to the Hausa-language film industry rooted in Kano, Nigeria, plays a significant role in shaping cultural, social, and economic narratives among the Hausa community. This study explores the diverse reactions of the Hausa audience toward Kannywood films, based on content gathered from social media platforms and previous research. In addition, the exclusively qualita... More >>

The Hands That Built Nations: Graphite Drawings of African Braiders

706 (Abstract) 194 (Download) PDF
Abstract:

This paper examines how the worn-out hands of the African hair braider, drawn in heavy graphite, create a decolonial move. It re-positions these hands as instruments of labour into a text on which it argues that their labour is inherently connected to the larger, and mostly hidden, processes of postcolonial reconstruction and identification making. The article is presented from a material-based... More >>

Ambiguous Visualities: Gender, Governmentality and Graffiti in Urban India

717 (Abstract) 388 (Download) PDF
Abstract:

This paper examines a series of murals produced by a street art collective in an Indian city, situating them within the rapid expansion of state- and privately commissioned street art projects across Indian urban centres over the last decade. While street art has historically been associated with claims to urban democracy and challenges to elite cultural authority, its recent institutionalizati... More >>