Your quick and dirty primer to contemporary African art.
One artist works with defunct weapons, transforming obsolete AK-47s and soldiers' boots into elaborate thrones and evocative masks. Another uses local textiles to explore the slippery ground between figuration and abstraction. A third folds his self-portraits into vibrant commentaries on current events, at once humorous and urgent. There is no common thread of African art, no predominant theme, medium or tone.
As Nigerian artist Peju Alatise explained, the West often conveys overly simplistic projections of African art out of ignorance, negligence or simple lack of exposure. "The one-sided Eurocentric narrative that defines and ascribes its notions of what art from Africa should be," Alatise said. "The notion that art from Africa cannot utilize modern materials and forms of expression and should instead be characterized by the use of traditional and generic materials from the local environment."
Recently, Bonhams hosted the world's first African contemporary art sale, "Africa Now," capturing on a microcosmic scale the expansive range falling under the umbrella of African art today. The show set numerous world records, proving that if you aren't familiar with Africa's leading artistic forces, you best take note. Below are 10 contemporary artists whose names you should have on your radar. Get to work!
1. Cheri Samba (Democratic Republic of Congo, born 1956) ...
(Read more here)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/contem...
Posted By: Jeni Fa
Thursday, October 29th 2015 at 9:35AM
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