atelier 55 – The Curator of Contemporary African Designatelier 55 – The Curator of Contemporary African Design
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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Duma Mtimkulu is a South African ceramicist blending art and ceramics with each piece he makes. Referring to himself as an ‘Earth Bender’ Duma is drawn to clay for the freedom it gives him to create and the opportunity the medium offers for manipulation.
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Artist and designer Bouchra Boudoua is upholding the age-old techniques of Moroccan craftsmanship with her patterned ceramic collections. Blending craft and design Bouchra draws inspiration from Morocco’s traditional pottery heritage reinterpreting the patterns, and forms for contemporary living.
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The instability of life on the road led former punk rock musician Osa Atoe to seek an alternative creative outlet. Pottery was something that had always been at the back of her mind so one day she signed up for classes and was hooked setting up her business Pottery by Osa in 2015 from her kitchen. Initially running her business part-time while working as an after-school art teacher Osa has since transitioned into working in it full-time from her dedicated studio in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
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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.
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Endo² is a stylish minimalist art-led brand by Kenyan-Japanese sisters Yvonne and Patti Endo. Born in Tokyo and currently living in Kenya the sisters came up with the idea of pairing Patti’s continuous line drawings with Yvonne’s business marketing and management acumen.
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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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Atelier Fifty Five spotlights the work of 9 dynamic designers whose innovative use of Africa’s diverse craft heritages is translated into modern sophisticated products for contemporary living. And in doing so are upholding the banner of Well Made In Africa. Re-imagining techniques and materials these designers are paying homage to the skill of making things by hand thereby recognising how craft is at the heart of true luxury.
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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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Fatimata ‘Faty’ Ly is a Senegalese artist who uses ceramics as her canvas, the blank surfaces enabling her to bring to life the stories of Africa’s rich cultural and artistic heritage. A graduate of London’s prestigious Central St Martin’s Faty is based in Dakar, Senegal where she designs her eponymous collections for production in Limoges, France, an area famed for its production of hard-paste porcelain.
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Freeform, organic, and sculptural are just some of the words that come to mind when viewing the work of ceramicist Ranti Bamgbala aka Ranti Bam, who is inspired by a love of words and metaphor, Eastern philosophy, etymology, and clay. Born in Lagos, Nigeria, and raised in London Ranti set up her studio practice in 2015 after graduating from the renowned City Lit Ceramics degree course.
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I recently came across these intriguing half basket, half ceramic vessels, which I found out to be the work of Eneida Lombe Tavares a Portuguese conceptual production designer of Angolan heritage. Named Caruma, the Portuguese word for pine needles the elegant collection is formed of one of a kind vases that explore her African heritage in the context of Portuguese culture.
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The beauty, culture, and rituals of the Sahara are the inspiration behind a ceramics collection crafted by Dina Nur Satti founder of Nur Ceramics. Of Sudanese/Somali heritage Dina grew up in France and Kenya and is now based in Brooklyn, New York her home for over 16 years. Working with clay enables Dina to explore personal growth and the stories that shape culture, traditions and rituals.
Read MoreAndlie Dyalvane [South Africa] [Image credits: Bird Vessel, 2015; Andile Dyalvane – Friedman Benda] Andlie Dyalvane sees the unveiling of his first solo exhibition at Friedman Benda Gallery in New York this week. Opening on Thursday, 23rd June, the exhibition runs for two months and will showcase over 20 unique pieces by the South African ceramicist.
Read MoreMyriam Mourabit [Morocco] [Image credit: Tagine Ceramics – Myriam Mourabit] Award-winning Moroccan ceramicist Myriam Mourabit creates exquisite ceramic products inspired by Morocco’s rich ceramic heritage. The designer who is based in Rabat, Morocco trained in Paris at the Duperré School of Applied Arts and the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs. She founded her company in 1998 and from her studio skillfully produces collections that include: bowls, vases, tableware, furniture, and interior fittings.
Read MoreYinka Shonibare [Nigeria] [Image credit: Yinka Shonibare for Tate, Small Plate – Tate] British/Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare MBE has designed an exclusive range of highly collectable fine bone china dinnerware for Tate, one of the UK’s premier art institutions. The limited-edition collection sees a distinctively patterned tea set and dinner plates inspired by, the Tate’s archives, research Yinka carries out at the institution, as well influences from his own work. The illustrations combine historical text and imagery, which is incorporated into several different collage patterns, based on Yinka’s intricate collage drawings. The patterns are created using an array of media, including the Dutch Wax fabrics Yinka […]
Read MoreUgandan Ceramics [Uganda] [Image credits: Ugandan Ceramics Pottery School] Closely aligned with Vision for Africa International, and Austrian based Christian organisation; Ugandan Ceramics is a pottery school based near Kampala, Uganda. Offering training in the various methods of ceramics production, the students who attend the school are given the opportunity to study with artists from Uganda and Europe, amongst them, are former students who have gone on to become instructors themselves.
Read MoreArdmore [South Africa] Ardmore is an award-winning ceramics studio creating products that are distinctive, colourful, whimsical, and full of character. Ardmore’s ceramics call to mind the tradition of detailed porcelain and pottery artworks seen throughout the ages, particularly in Chinese and Japanese culture, and in recognition of the studio’s high level of creativity and craftsmanship have been labelled ‘modern-day collectibles’ by Christie’s, one of the world’s most prestigious fine art auction houses. Located in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, Ardmore was founded over twenty-five years ago by fine artist, Fée Halsted; who began mentoring Bonnie Ntshalintshali and five years after they started were […]
Read MoreKpando Pottery [Ghana] [Image credit: Kpando Pottery] Organic shapes exhibiting protruding knobbly bumps and spiky thorn-like shapes remind me of gourds, the hard bulbous shells of fruit, and the tall slender forms of cacti. Skilfully moulded by hand, without the aid of a potter’s wheel these forms are part of a range of decorative, and functional interior pottery products from Kpando Pottery, a business based in Ghana that takes its name from the Volta Region of Ghana, an area known for its skilled craftsmanship and distinctive pottery production. Kpando Pottery was founded by Joseph Nii Noi Dowuona, who has been working with […]
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