atelier 55 – The Curator of Contemporary African Designatelier 55 – The Curator of Contemporary African Design
Art and design from some of Africa’s finest designers and makers are on show at the French auction house, Artcurial. Art Exception / Exceptions d’Afrique brings together 45 exceptional craft, design and artworks from 25 artists representing 15 African countries. Curated by Nelly Wandji Exceptions d’Afrique explores and celebrates the heritage and traditions of know-how through timeless materials translated into a contemporary avant-garde look.
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Postponed from September 2020 The London Design Biennale is now taking place in June 2021 at London’s Somerset House. The Biennale promotes international collaboration and the global role of design with exhibitions and installations that “demonstrate the ambition to create universal solutions to problems which concern us all.” The theme for this showcase is Resonance exploring the ripple effect of ground-breaking design concepts on the way we live, and the choices we make.
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In her debut solo exhibition, entitled iLobola, ceramic artist Zizipho Poswa explores the value and relevance of Lobola an ancient African tradition of bride price. In many Southern African cultures, this price was paid in the form of cows, an animal that is synonymous with wealth. Seen as a way of uniting two families Lobola is an ongoing tradition still practised throughout the region with money replacing the cow.
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Artist Djakou Kassi Nathalie creates intricately decorated ceramics that tell powerfully moving stories on subjects ranging from saying no to domestic violence, to celebrations of divine womanhood. Nathalie has been creating ceramics since 1992 and started her own practice soon after graduating from University. Nathalie’s work is characterised by a mosaic pattern of mask-like faces and ornate lines hand carved into the surfaces of the clay. Faces that adorn large sculptural vases, vessels, cubes, plates, and stylized human figures.
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Art is a beautiful expressive way to personalise your interior spaces. The world of African art is booming with record sales being set in the major auction hubs of London and New York. Across the African continent collectors from Lagos to Cape Town are increasing investing in homegrown and regional talent.
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Traditional African hairstyles are the inspiration behind a series of ceramic sculptured vases by South African ceramic artist Zizipho Poswa. Entitled Magodi, the sculptures explore the central role of hair salons as meeting places for women.
Read More![Chair [iii] Sculpture by Nigerian American artist Dozie Kanu](https://www.atelier55design.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Dozie_Kanu_Chair-iii_2018_0-406x609.jpg)
Dozie Kanu is a Nigerian-American artist and designer who practice intersects art and design. The son of Nigerian immigrant parents Dozie was born in the US, and currently lives and works in Portugal and New York City. These multi-cultural experiences inform his creative expression and the stories he tells through the object he creates. His inspirations draw on the streets and environment where he grew up in Texas, and the traditions of African craftsmanship.
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While browsing LinkedIn I came across a post highlighting the work of Happy Chikoyo Robert, a Tanzanian female visual artist. Happy who lives and works in Dar es salaam was born in Songe, the southern part of Tanzania. Her interest in art began early in her life by working with beads and creating drawings. Her work focuses on capturing the female form and essence; and expressing their feelings and beauty. An emerging artist hailed as one to watch. Happy is quietly building a name for herself developing her art skills and experience under the mentorship of fellow Tanzanian artist Haji […]
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Baba Tjeko is a South African multi-disciplinary visual artist whose colour-filled graphic illustrations are helping to keep the disappearing art of Litema alive. Baba Tjeko’s artwork features bold geometric patterns depicting Basotho cultural symbols and soulful images of men and women whose faces bear the weight of triumph over adversity as they navigate the challenges of their day to day lives.
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American artist Kehinde Wiley has opened the doors to Black Rock in Dakar Senegal, a multi-disciplinary artists residency program designed to bring together an international group of visual artists, writers, and filmmakers for a period of self-reflection, practice development and cultural exploration and cross-cultural collaboration. For Kehinde, who’s fame reached new heights with his portrait of Barack Obama, Black Rock is more than just a residency it is also home to his personal studio as he seeks to divide his time between New York and West Africa.
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Contemporary African designers and artists inspired by scarification and referencing the ancient African tradition in their work. Scarification is the process of superficially cutting, scratching, etching or burning permanent designs into the skin. This form of body decoration is a practice common to West Africa where for centuries the resultant markings expressed a form of unspoken communication such as rank, tribe, beauty, and strength. Patterns in the form of scars would range from simple markings to those more elaborate and intricate adorning the face, chest, torso arms and legs. Scarification is not for the faint-hearted, undergoing the practice was said […]
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Marrying the old with the new British/Ghanaian architect Sir David Adjaye brings the beauty and elegance of traditional African art pieces to several of his contemporary architecture designs. Born in Tanzania to Ghanaian diplomat parents Adjaye grew up in several places including Egypt, Yemen, and Lebanon before the family moved to the UK where he resides. Adjaye founded his architectural practice Adjaye Associates in London and has offices in Ghana and New York. Adjaye also cites a growing interest in Africa, arising from a need to contribute in some way to the development of the continent that began with a decade […]
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African art is commanding increased attention on the international stage. We highlight 6 new generation African artists to know, who through their thought-provoking work are helping to shape contemporary art across the African continent, whilst making their mark internationally.
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Across Africa bold, colourful and intricate patterns can be found throughout fabric and surface designsthat reach back through the centuries. Pattern continues to influence the expressions of modern design emerging from and inspired by the continent. Here is a selection African designers and artists creating their own unique pattern adorned creations.
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Collaboration is a powerful thing, the meeting of ideas to create new ones and at times offering up unexpected viewpoints. Collaboration offers those involved a chance to learn, pick up new skills and show off each other’s skills at their best. And in this spirit I have rounded up seven inspiring modern African design collaborations that have come together over the years:
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London is gearing up for the 2nd dedicated auction of Modern & Contemporary African Art at Sotheby’s. This year’s auction sees artworks by 62 artists representing 16 countries: Algeria, Morocco, Benin, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, South Africa, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe. The selection of art on offer includes paintings, photographs, drawings and sculpture from the 20th and 21st centuries.
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The opening of the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary African Art in Cape Town has brought along a host of different ways for visitors to engage with contemporary art from the exhibitions and installations on display throughout the museum, to a dedicated programme of workshops and talks, to an onsite shop which will enable visitors to find mementos of their visit.
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Our choice of art says a lot about who we are, reflecting our tastes and experiences amongst other indicators. And despite digital platforms enabling us to discover original talent the sheer amount of information being put out can sometimes have the opposite effect of making it difficult to find, purchase or remember where we saw artwork that represents who we are in one place. Enter Ayok’a, a curated platform that brings together the work of talented black artists making it easy for you to find stylish, original and representative artwork to adorn your walls or carry about your person in the form […]
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The 22nd September 2017 saw the opening of the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary African Art (Zeitz MOCAA), in Cape Town, South Africa, heralded as being the first major institution on the African continent dedicated to collecting, researching and preserving the art of contemporary Africa and its diaspora.
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Nelsa Guambe is a self-taught artist who lives and works in Maputo, Mozambique. Primarily a painter Nelsa’s work moves beyond the canvas to incorporate product design, where working in collaboration with a local design studio, Piratas Do Pau her colourful and surreal images help to transform discarded water heaters collected from the city’s streets into distinctive functional products such as wine racks and lighting. As one of the designer-makers I had the pleasure of selecting for the IFA Pure Gold exhibition, which explores rubbish and its use in sustainable design to creating objects of value in design, I thought this would be a […]
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