International Artist's Day: 5 African Artists You Should Know
© AFP 2023 JOHANNES EISELE
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The International Artists' Day, celebrated on October 25, honors artists and all the contributions they make to the world culture. The day also celebrates one of the world's most famous artists, Pablo Picasso, who was born on October 25, 1881.
Since the early 1990s, Africa has experienced a period of creative flowering as an increasing number of international galleries over the world has opened their doors to African exhibitions. In honor of the International Day of the Artist on October 25, Sputnik Africa lists some of the numerous African artists that you should know.
El Anatsui (Ghana)
Included in the 2023 Time 100 list of the world's most influential people, this Ghanaian sculptoris known for his "bottle-top installations", which consist of thousands of pieces of aluminum sourced from recycling stations. He sews the small objects together with copper wire, creating fabric-like metallic wall sculptures.
Visitors walks in front of the installation "Ozone Layer and Yam Mound(s)" by Ghanan born artist El Anatsui during a press preview of the exhibition "Who knows tomorrow" on June 2, 2010 at the Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery) in Berlin.
© AFP 2023 JOHANNES EISELE
El Anatsui "Ozone Layer and Yam Mound(s)," 2010.
Wangechi Mutu (Kenya)
Kenyan artist Wangechi Mutu is member of the Afro-futurist movement. She mixes African cultural references with elements of science fiction to create disturbing and intriguing characters.
An exhibit entitled 'Grow the Tea, then Break the Cups' by Wangechi Mutu is pictured during a press view for the exhibition 'Feminine Power: the divine to the demonic' at the British Museum in central London on May 18, 2022.
© AFP 2023 JUSTIN TALLIS
Wangechi Mutu "Feminine Power: the divine to the demonic," 2022.
William Kentridge (South Africa)
William Kentridge is a South African artist known for his charcoal drawings. Influenced by the difficult history of his country, which has suffered from the brutal apartheid regime, his work is not just full of emotions, but also conveys a political message.
A woman walks past a woven piece by South African artist and Kyoto Prize 2010 recipient William Kentridge during a public appearance at a art gallery in Johannesburg on October 3, 2014.
© AFP 2023 MARCO LONGARI
William Kentridge, "Accounts and Drawings from the Underground," 2014.
Julie Mehretu (Ethiopia)
Julie Mehretu is an Ethiopian-American contemporary visual artist known for her multi-layered paintings of large-scale and abstract landscapes. Her art is described as focusing on the cumulative effects of socio-political change in modern cities.
Julie Mehretu, Cairo, 2013
© Photo THOMAS HAWK
Julie Mehretu, Cairo, 2013
Cheri Samba (DR Congo)
Congolese painter Cheri Samba is one of the mostwell-known artists to emerge from the Central African country. His striking cartoon-like figurative and colorful works explore and satirize everyday life in Congo.
"Arts of Africa in Monaco: 6,000 years of African art in 500 works" - Prince Albert II of Monaco (D) and former Senegalese President Abdou Diouf look at a painting by Cheri Samba, July 15 2005 in Monaco, during their visit to the "Arts of Africa" exhibition.
© AFP 2023 JACQUES MUNCH
Cheri Samba "Arts of Africa in Monaco: 6,000 years of African art in 500 works", 2005.
