Ghanaian artist Amoako Boafo’s ascent to artwork stardom has been nothing wanting stellar. In 2021, his work was launched into house, marking a serious second for the artist and African modern artwork at massive. That very same yr, Kim Jones tapped him to create visuals for Dior’s Summer time 2021 marketing campaign, and later, he caught the eye of mega-dealer Larry Gagosian, who referred to him because the “way forward for portraiture.”
Now the famend painter is making his UK solo debut with I Do Not Come to You by Likelihood at Gagosian London – a celebration of his Accra roots and a tribute to the creative group that gave solution to his meteoric rise. Unfolding throughout three rooms, the exhibition introduces a brand new physique of fingertip-painted works – celebrations of Black pleasure that “counter the flawed narrative of stereotypes” with tender expressions of “intimacy, group and self-determination.”
A wedding of artwork and structure, the present debuts the artist’s first double-sided freestanding portray – a pair of life-sized femme figures are posed back-to-back on folding picket panels. The piece reimagines nkyinkyim, an Adinkra image that represents the twists and turns of life, and in flip, the resilience and perseverance of Boafo’s figures as they navigate a tumultuous social world.
“I make work that permit me to have fun the place I come from and what I aspire to be, whereas sharing distinctive views and understanding,” the artist shared in a latest assertion.
On the coronary heart of the presentation lies a recreation of the courtyard from the artist’s childhood residence, the place he first discovered to color. Created in collaboration with designer Glenn DeRoche, who labored on Boafo’s artist residency program, dot.ateliers, the construction fuses private narratives with the spirit of collaborative creativity, the place households and artists come collectively to share concepts, supplies and inspirations.
I Do Not Come to You by Likelihood is now on view by way of Might 24.
Gagosian London – Grosvenor Hill
20 Grosvenor Hill,
London W1K 3QD
