A blog containing articles on African Artists & their art, & our news.

Inside the World's Largest Collection of Contemporary African Art

by Gathinja Yamokoski

“It was just a passion. With my curator Andre Magnin, 99.9% of what we bought was from the artists directly—there was nothing organized.” he says, “I’m completely dyslexic so I never read any theory about art, especially what I collect. With contemporary African art, there are no books whatsoever. There might be three people in the world who know a bit more than me, so it’s completely instinctive.” - Jean Pigozzi

Tingatinga Cooperative in Tanzania, East Africa. | True African Art .com

Tourism & Tradition: Tingatinga & his Painters

by Gathinja Yamokoski

Tingatinga African Paintings: From Tanzania to Worldwide Recognition Sourced from Art-Bin.com During the 1960's, Edward S. Tingatinga established an African painting style that became associated with his home country, Tanzania. The name today, "Tingatinga" refers to his form of art in Tanzania and across the world, especially in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Kenya.

African Artist Martin Bulinya with his Waterfall painting and Gathinja

African Artists' Letter for the Promotion of African Art

by Gathinja Yamokoski

The most critical, cultural event that has ever taken place in Kenya has been the attainment of Independence. The triumph of that liberating feat on December 12th, 1963 opened the door for a free Kenyan culture, but its African artists’ talents and contribution to that culture are still yet to be fully realized.

Why 'outstanding' and 'affordable' African art is so hot right now

by Gathinja Yamokoski

By Eoghan Macguire, for CNN

http://www.cnn.com/style/article/africa-art-kenya-auction/index.html

...this is the Circle Art auction in Nairobi, Kenya -- East Africa's only contemporary art auction.

Ivory Coast African Artist Channeling the Spirits

by Gathinja Yamokoski

Ephrem Kouakou prefers to work while the world sleeps. The artist says that in the dead of night, absent the sound of any human voice or music, he can best hear the "spirits" talking.

Black African Art in the form of Wildlife

by Gathinja Yamokoski

What does Contemporary Art of Africa really present? Invariably, one may find an online gallery of “glossy” photographs, depicting various diverse animals in a variety and multitude of settings and poses. To truly throw this into real African art and to remember the impressions seen whilst on an actual wildlife encounter in Africa, one often feels at one with the continent, if not connected deeply to the animal they see.

African Paintings Critique of the African Artist Chagwi

by Gathinja Yamokoski

I walked up the stairs, there was something that caught my attention. There before me, hanging on a wall, was a very large painting of a woman who was moving in very slow rhythmic waves due to the slight breeze. I stood right in front of the painting and my imagination went wild! “This is a masterpiece! Who did this?” I thought.

Is Contemporary African Art Ready to Jump?

by Gathinja Yamokoski

Africa has been underrepresented in galleries and at auctions, but it looks like collectors eager to try something new may be developing an appetite for African art.

How Can East African Artists Benefit from their Hard Work?

by Gathinja Yamokoski

From the Daily Nation Newspaper

The debate on whether art can pay has been around for a long time and remains urgent in Kenya today.

Many of our artists remain poor till death despite the few so-called celebrities driving around in big cars and wearing bling bling. The moneyed lot among our artists is very much a minority.

Chike Obeagu, Isi Ewu Na Knowbi, 2015. Courtesy of Richard Taittinger Gallery.

Contemporary African Art’s Hard-won Rise to the Main Stage

by Gathinja Yamokoski

That “Contemporary African Art” is a collecting category encompassing 54 countries, 1.1 billion people, over 2,000 spoken languages, multiple thousands of native tribes, and near equally split between the traditions of Islam and Christianity, surely presents a slew of problematics. Africa’s unity lies more in outsiders’ perceptions of geographic continuity. However, contemporary Africa, in all its pluralism, is also united by a seemingly unexpected entity (unexpected especially to those outsiders): art.

Article on African Art's Influence on Western Art

by Gathinja Yamokoski

In the early 1900’s, European artists were facing a struggle between the avant-garde style that had been established and a more contemporary realism that was emerging. This approach to art influenced such artists from around the world to begin to question their own material, subjects, media and intentions. Eventually, it all led back to Africa.

African Art Overview

by Gathinja Yamokoski

What Is African Art?

In the most basic sense, African art is a type of art that originated and is influenced by the number of diverse cultures in Africa.Just as many historians believe that Africa was the birthplace of all mankind, some art experts believe that African art was the beginning of all art. Whether this is true or not, like most other types of art, African art has roots in ancient times.

The New Face of African Art

by Gathinja Yamokoski

At a time when values for some blue-chip contemporary artworks have fallen by a third from a year ago, collectors are finding pockets of strength in a surprising new art mecca—Africa.

Ghanaian artist Nii Hylton - Trading Conflict for Success

by Gathinja Yamokoski

Most anyone who has any critique of African art has heard the story of a struggling African artist. Whether it be finding the means to pay for materials, finding clients to buy their paintings, or being a victim of exploitive deals from gallery brokers, the African artist generally reflects the story of trying to be successful against all odds.

African Paintings from Kenya: Ownership & Dissemination

by Gathinja Yamokoski

People in other countries more often consume the market of contemporary African art than Africans themselves.

Take for example the country of Kenya, in East Africa. You will not find framed, original African paintings in most citizens' homes. Furthermore, Kenyans often do not see African art as an official product, and surely do not view it as valuable now or gaining value over a lifetime. It is unfortunate that in Kenya and Africa as a whole, artists are abundant and their paintings very beautiful, but the public citizen does not recognize their talents. Why is this?

Kenyan Artwork Growing in International Popularity

by Gathinja Yamokoski

Long overlooked on the international arts scene, Kenya is finally gaining prestige on the world stage. Some African artists can now make their living entirely from their artwork and collectors are coming from around the world to buy it.

The History of African Paintings - by Amelia Du Plessis

by Gathinja Yamokoski

African paintings first emerged as those that still appear on rock faces and in caves. The first of these was discovered in Namibia, and is thought to be approximately 27,000 years old. There are also an estimated 30.000 rock paintings scattered throughout the incredible Drakensberg Mountain Range in South Africa. This African art medium was used by ancient Africans to convey information, to relate events, to depict everyday life and to communicate with their spirit ancestors. In this way, rock art created an important link between the physical and spiritual realms.

Wycliffe Ndwgia with one of his paintings and Website Owner, Gathinja

African Paintings and Their Artists’ Inspiration

by Gathinja Yamokoski

Every time any artist decides to make a painting, they have their own source of inspiration for a given subject, whether it be a realistic inspiration from real life memory or abstract subjects that they represent solely from their imagination. The world surrounding an artist influences what they paint. The mind of the artist is manifested through the paint and brush. Some look to paint abstractly on a political situation.