Axis Gallery was founded in Manhattan in 1997 as the only US gallery promoting both classical and contemporary African art. Axis initially concentrated on southern Africa, but soon broadened to cover more of Africa, better fulfilling what the name Axis was chosen to evoke: the intersection of the cultures of Africa and the West. During its first ten years, at its Chelsea location, Axis Gallery staged several groundbreaking, critically acclaimed exhibitions, and gave several South African artists their first exposure in New York. 

Today, Axis Gallery has adopted a project-oriented program, combining occasional exhibitions in New York and international fairs, but concentrating on showing and placing artists in institutional settings, including through residencies, international collaborations, and training opportunities.

Classical African art is shown by appointment only at its New Jersey location, with emphasis on museum-quality pieces, particularly from the neglected traditions of southern and eastern Africa.

Axis Gallery’s director, Lisa Brittan, and curator, Gary van Wyk, trained both as artists and art historians in South Africa during the 1980s, and were active in the anti-apartheid Resistance Art Movement. Before founding Axis Gallery, Lisa Brittan was a documentary filmmaker and Gary van Wyk researched and wrote about African art and culture. They have served as guest curators, exhibition and collection consultants, and appraisers, and have contributed to the collections of leading museums in the United States and internationally.

In 2024, ART AFRICA included them in its feature of 150+ CULTURAL ADVOCATES “at the vanguard of the Global South’s postcolonial discourse, having played a pivotal role in reshaping the narrative and perspectives surrounding art and artists of African descent.” Read more about ART AFRICA’s  three-year initiative  here.

For more insight into Axis Gallery, read this interview by Rafael Soldi, and these remarks from Dr. Susan Vogel at Axis Gallery’s 20th anniversary show in Chelsea, New York.