Lara Koseff and Londi Modiko

Co-founders and directors of the Independent Network for Contemporary Culture & Art, Johannesburg

In recent years, Lara Koseff and Londi Modiko have been at the forefront of initiatives that look to rethink the platforms available to artists and curators working independently, both in entrepreneurial and non-profit contexts. Together with the independent curator Natasha Becker, they co-founded UNDERLINE projects in 2018 ­– creating an art fair unlike any other, in which the booths were produced by independent curators, selected via an open call, and funded through corporate donations. It opened to acclaim at the Museum of African Design in Johannesburg in 2019. Earlier this year, the pair co-founded the INCCA (Independent Network for Contemporary Culture & Art) – a non-profit enterprise that they co-direct with the Johannesburg-based curator Nthabiseng Mokoena, which seeks to build upon the success of UNDERLINE.

Between them, Koseff and Modiko have a wealth of experience in commercial galleries. Koseff served as a senior curator and liaison for numerous artists with Goodman Gallery in Johannesburg from 2010–18; her curatorial interests focus on artistic and ideological connections between Africa and the rest of the global south, and she has collaborated with artists including Grada Kilomba, Ghada Amer, and Reza Farkhondeh, while also contributing regularly to journals, catalogues, and the Sunday Times in South Africa. Modiko has recently rejoined Goodman – where she worked from 2010–16 – as associate director; in her work as an independent art advisor over the previous three years, Modiko has provided consultancy for numerous private collections and corporate organisations, as well as the Constitutional Hill of South Africa.

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