The most revealing measure of an artist’s legacy may not be the number of museums that display their work, but the number of people whose creative lives changed because they encountered it.

For El Anatsui, that legacy stretches far beyond the monumental sculptures that made his name.

That idea sits at the heart of El Anatsui: The Man, the Myth, the Legend at 80 and Counting, a 411-page festschrift launched at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

Bringing together more than 100 contributors from Africa, Europe and North America, the publication looks at an artist whose influence has been as much about people and ideas as materials.

Born in Ghana and based for decades in Nigeria, Anatsui transformed humble discarded objects—bottle caps, aluminium strips and copper wire—into vast, shimmering works that challenge the boundaries between sculpture, textile, architecture and memory.

Yet his four decades at Nsukka reveal another side of his contribution.

Through teaching and mentorship, he became an important figure in the development of the Nsukka School of Art, helping create an intellectual environment where African artists could question inherited definitions of art and material.

That history gives the festschrift particular weight. It is not simply an account of an internationally celebrated career; it is a record of how one artist became part of an institution’s cultural DNA.

For Ghana, Anatsui’s story also carries a wider significance.

His journey from Ghanaian roots to international prominence demonstrates how African artists can move through multiple cultural landscapes without surrendering the histories that inform their work.

The Nsukka celebration therefore feels larger than a birthday tribute.

It is an acknowledgment that Anatsui’s most enduring work may be the artistic possibilities he opened for others—and the generations still learning how to transform what they inherit into something entirely their own.

The first signs of Paragbeile arrive with the harvest. In Tumu, in Ghana’s Upper West Region, the final weeks of January and the opening days of February bring a welcome change of rhythm as farm produce fills the community and thanksgiving takes centre stage.

Music carries through the town, dancers take to the gathering spaces, and families come together to celebrate what the land has provided.

Paragbeile is a thanksgiving harvest festival rooted in the agricultural life of the people of Tumu. At its heart is a simple but deeply meaningful idea: after months of cultivation, the community pauses to give thanks for a successful harvest.

The crops that have sustained households are no longer simply food from the farm; during the festival, they become symbols of work, survival, abundance and hope for another productive season.

One of the festival’s defining features is the display of farm produce. Harvested crops are brought into the public celebration, giving visitors a visual sense of the agricultural wealth of the area.

These displays also honour the farmers whose labour begins long before the festivities. Alongside them come music, traditional dancing and merry-making, transforming the thanksgiving into a shared social occasion.

The festival’s significance extends beyond the celebration itself. For families and communities, Paragbeile creates an opportunity to strengthen relationships, reconnect generations and acknowledge the collective effort behind the harvest.

It also provides a moment to pass cultural knowledge from older members of the community to younger people, keeping local traditions connected to contemporary life.

For visitors, Paragbeile offers something that cannot be captured by a photograph of Ghana’s landscapes alone. It is an invitation to see how agriculture, gratitude, music and community come together in everyday cultural life.

To experience Paragbeile in Tumu is to encounter Ghana through the people who cultivate its soil and celebrate its seasons—a reminder that some of the country’s most meaningful cultural experiences begin with something as fundamental as giving thanks for food.

What if the key to solving a difficult business problem is not having all the answers, but knowing which questions to ask?

That is the idea behind Think Like a Business Analyst, a free, in-person workshop coming to Accra on Friday, August 14, 2026.

A Practical Introduction to Business Analysis

Organised by the Centre for Business Analysis, the one-hour session will take place from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at 17 Garden Road, East Legon.

Rather than presenting business analysis as a specialised corporate skill reserved for experienced professionals, the workshop is designed to show how its methods can be applied to everyday organisational challenges.

Business Analysts play an important role in helping organisations understand problems, identify opportunities and make better-informed decisions.

In Ghana’s growing professional and entrepreneurial environment, those skills have relevance across sectors, from technology and finance to human resources, accounting and project management.

Learning Through Real Problems

Participants can expect a hands-on introduction to the discipline, including practical techniques and real-world examples of how Business Analysts approach complex challenges.

The workshop will also explore why the profession is increasingly in demand and offer guidance for people considering it as a career.

The invitation extends beyond established professionals. Students, graduates, entrepreneurs, project managers, IT professionals, accountants, HR practitioners and anyone curious about business analysis are welcome.

A Useful Evening in Accra

For international visitors interested in Ghana’s contemporary professional landscape, the workshop offers an unusual way to experience the country’s business community beyond traditional tourism. It is also an opportunity to meet people interested in innovation, career development and better ways of working.

For Ghanaians, particularly students and early-career professionals, the event could provide practical insight into a career path that connects business thinking with problem-solving.

Admission is free, making the workshop an accessible opportunity to spend an evening learning a skill with applications far beyond the classroom. Sometimes, the most valuable career lesson begins with learning how to look at a problem differently.