With his “Butterfly I” installation, Okai highlights the complex processes of transformation, identity, and cultural memory. Here, the butterfly functions as a universal symbol of change: From a cocooned existence a creature arises that stands for movement, freedom, and self-development. This metamorphosis does not take the form of an abrupt break, however, but is the result of a longer developmental process that requires patience, adaptability, and inner strength.
In the context of contemporary African art, the work can be read as a reflection on an identity that emerges between tradition and contemporary life, between local roots and global networks. In this way, the butterfly refers not only to personal change but also to cultural advance. Its wings symbolize both lightness and vulnerability; beauty and transience are combined here. Precisely this ambivalence makes the theme so expressive: Freedom is not a matter of course, but always also under threat and in need of preservation.
Okai links a readily understandable theme from nature with questions as to what we wish to become, cultural belonging, and the openness of human identity. The piece invites us to construe change not as a threat but as an opportunity for growth and new prospects.
October 28, 2026 – January 31, 2027

Our thanks go to Duke Franz of Bavaria Dank for this loan and for his generous support and patronage of Die Neue Sammlung – The Design Museum.