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Forget Commodities. Art Prices Are Rising: 50 African Artists You Should Be Investing In

Forget Commodities. Art Prices Are Rising: 50 African Artists You Should Be Investing In

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Africa’s economy may be reeling from volatile oil and commodities prices, but prices are holding steady or rising for many of the continent’s African artists you should be investing in. Works by Africa’s best-known living artists often sell for less than $150,000 — the asking price at auction for works by much younger, less time-tested artists in New York. Here are artists from Zimbabwe, Ivory Coast, South Africa, Kenya and Angola that you should be watching if you’re interested in investing in African art.

africanews.it
africanews.it

Pocas Pascoal

This filmmaker’s work bridges documentary and art. She was the first-ever camerawoman to work in Angolan broadcasting. Her films, with themes such as war, displacement, helplessness, and familial bonds, have been screened around the globe.

contemporaryand.com
contemporaryand.com

Nástio Mosquito

Mosquito is part of a younger generation of African artists experimenting with performance art, video, spoken word, and music, challenging stereotypes of Africans by putting them in a Western contexts. He has exhibited at the Tate Modern in London.

foundation-sindikadokolo.com
foundation-sindikadokolo.com

N’Dilo Mutima

N’Dino Mutima is an Angolan artist who mainly works in photography but also incorporates elements of performance and installation. His most famous work is photos of himself wearing various objects on his face — a reference to traditional African masks.

artafrica.info
artafrica.info

Yonamine

Angolan artist Yonamine’s multicultural influence can be seen in his installation works which break down stereotypes about Africa. He combines numerous different objects to create them, such as magazines, old photos and discarded cigarette boxes.

bbc.co.uk
bbc.co.uk

Helga Gamboa

Helga Gamboa is a ceramics artist who combines traditional methods and modern imagery for often shocking results, such as glaze resembling blood pouring from a vessel. Gamboa now lives and works in the U.K.

artafrica.info
artafrica.info

Paulo Kussy

One of Angola’s most celebrated artists, Paulo Kussy’s paintings combine styles like graffiti, Japanese printmaking and Soviet propaganda. Kussy left Angola, studied art in Lisbon and eventually returned to Angola to exhibit.

contemporaryand.com
contemporaryand.com

Edson Chagas

Edson Chagas represented Angola in the 55th Venice Biennale for which the country won the prestigious Golden Lion Award. His photography depicts social issues, critique consumerism, and shows relationships between space and time.

body.art.pl
body.art.pl

Ana Clara Guerra Marques

Guerra Marques is a dancer and choreographer considered a pioneer of Angolan contemporary dance. After Angolan independence, most dancing teachers left the country. As a teen, she was put in charge of the only dancing school in Angola. She uses dance as a form of social critique, and also uses disabled dancers in her works.

chilalamoco-fotografia.com
chilalamoco-fotografia.com

Chilala Moco

Chilala Moco is the son of a former Angolan prime minister. Family connections may have helped him in the art world, but deserves the recognition as a photographer. His portraiture work shows the humanity of everyday Angolan people in stunning realism.

creativeafricanetwork.com
creativeafricanetwork.com

Kiluanji Kia Henda

Kiluanji Kia Henda is an Angolan photographer whose work has received international acclaim. His photographs deal with Africa’s colonial past. “The Great Italian Nude,” shows an African chief reclining on a sofa in the style of an Italian renaissance painting.

theguardian.com
theguardian.com

Kudzanai Chiurai

One of the best-known contemporary artists in Africa, he uses photography to speak about war, violence, and sacrifice, such as “The Minister of Finance,” wearing gold jewelry and wearing an oversized fur coat. Chiurai was exiled from Zimbabwe.

nytimes.com
nytimes.com

Nora Chipaumire

Chipaumire is a world-renowned dancer and choreographer who uses her work to challenge stereotypes of Africa. She moved to New York City after graduating from the University of Zimbabwe School of Law. Working abroad, she has found support.

thebehaviourreport.com
thebehaviourreport.com

Masimba Hwati

Zimbabwean Masimba Hwati can take an everyday object like a shoe, and transform it into something other worldly. “My work attempts to … express a reality which resides in the desires and aspirations of the people.” (newsday.co.zw)

contemporaryand.com
contemporaryand.com

Portia Zvavahera

Zimbabwean Portia Zvavhera’s paintings show ghostly depictions of women with contorted body parts. The use of patterns and textures in the paintings is indicative of her African roots, but there is a very modern feel to these eerie, powerful paintings.

voicesincolor.wordpress.com
voicesincolor.wordpress.com

Virginia Chihota

Zimbabwean Virginia Chihota now lives and works in Tripoli. She primarily works in printmaking and drawing, using images such as foreshortened figures, dolls or children to comment on themes of relationships, isolation, and despair.

theguardian.com
theguardian.com

Owen Maseko

One of Zimbabwe’s most prominent artists, Maseko got attention worldwide for depicting President Robert Mugabe in brutal scenes from the 1980s. He has been arrested and persecuted for his work, but it hasn’t stopped him from using art to heal.

voicesincolor.wordpress.com
voicesincolor.wordpress.com

Mthabisi Phili

Zimbabwean Mthabisi Phili is a both a poet and visual artist, and words often make their way into his artwork. Though Phili’s primary medium could be considered painting, it is the materials themselves (aluminium, paper, oil) which make a statement.

herald.co.zw
herald.co.zw

Calvin Chimutuwah

Chimutuwah’s paintings, drawings and photographs are a break from the stark, bold, and often-violent images often associated with Zimbabwean art. His depictions of animals, nature, and people have been described as ethereal and lost in time.

gallerydelta.com
gallerydelta.com

Gareth Nyandoro

Gareth Nyandoro uses found objects to create sculptures and mixed-media works that comment on daily life on the streets of Zimbabwe. He is a great example of the imaginativeness and resourcefulness evident in Zimbabwean art today.

contemporaryand.com
contemporaryand.com

Misheck Masamvu

Zimbabwean Mishek Masamvu’s work distorts images of people, such as having them walk on brooms instead of legs. He “questions the continent’s current trajectory by dramatically exposing psychosocial and political realities.” (themojogallery.com)

kopenhagen.dk, Louise Steiwer
kopenhagen.dk, Louise Steiwer

Tracey Rose

South African Tracey Rose takes a punk approach to art and is not afraid to be loud and cross boundaries. One of her most famous works is “Ciao Bella” from 2001 in which she created a feminist parody of Leonardo Da Vinci’s “Last Supper” at the Venice Biennale.

aratuntun.com
aratuntun.com

Karabo Poppy Moletsane

Karabo is a graphic designer and illustrator. You may have already seen some of her work on album covers or festival posters. She’s not just a commercial artist. She has an incredible ability to blend multiple styles into a hybrid that melds the many cultures of Africa along with global influences. Her imagery is a bit quirky, but that only makes the serious messages of identity, gender, and politics stronger.

anotherafrica.net
anotherafrica.net

Athi-Patra Ruga

If you’ve been paying attention, you may have heard of Athi-Patra Ruga. He is considered one of the top young artists in the world for his work which uses multiple cultural references to subvert ideas about body, politics, and ideology. One of his best-known exhibits is “The Future White Women of Azania Saga,” which showcased works such as a photograph of a woman costumed in balloons and riding a zebra, and brightly-colored mosaics of women made from flowers. 

anotherafrica.com
anotherafrica.com

Cameron Platter

Cameron Platter is creating a new type of South African pop art. The core difference between Platter’s pop art and pop art of the past is that Platter’s subject matter is not “popular.”  He takes ordinary experiences that get overlooked and reformulates them into stunning visual works. Whether it’s a poster, mural, or sculpture, the works are always bold – like when Platter painted “PLEASE PLEASE KILL US” on a wall.

artslink.co.za
artslink.co.za

Donna Kukama

Performance artist Donna Kukama knows about taking risks for art. She broke her leg during a performance in 2009 in which she was swinging off an overpass bridge in Johannesburg while throwing 10-rand notes to passers by. Her work is often about introducing strangeness into ordinary situations. By doing this, she is able to force people to look at reality in new ways. In 2013, Kukama received the Standard Bank Young Artist Award for performance art.

wn.com
wn.com

Mohau Modisakeng

Peter Modisakeng, who is known by his alias Mohau, was born in 1986 and grew up in Soweto. His work focuses on violence and how it shapes cultural identity. There is often theatricality to the work, whether in a direct performance or a staged photograph. His most famous works are a series of stark photos of himself symbolically wearing leopard print and an industrial work apron.

theguardian.com
theguardian.com

Ralph Ziman

Ralph Ziman is already well known as a filmmaker and mural artist. Now, he is making waves in the realm of photography as well. In January, he had his first solo show — a series of photographs of street vendors wielding AK47s ornately decorated with colorful beads.  His work challenges the clichés of war and violence in culture.

the guardian.com, Tristan Kenton
the guardian.com, Tristan Kenton

Nelisiwe Xaba

It would be unfair to label Nelisiwe Xaba a dancer or choreographer because her work combines so many different media and genres. Using space, video projections, and her body, Xaba is able to speak of issues such as gender roles and sexual control. Recently, Xaba was awarded the FNB Art Prize for her video installation, “Uncles & Angels,” which she created with Mocke J. van Veuren, a lecturer, filmmaker and researcher in Johannesburg.

theguardian.com
theguardian.com

Kudzanai Chiurai

Critics say one of the most impressive things about Chiurai’s work is that he is able to speak on themes of violence, war, and race without the notions of victimization that usually accompany them. There is a dark humorous undertone to his bold images that show staged scenes like “The Minister of Health” holding onto tribal skulls or warlords holding hands.

thelocal.fr, Quentin Evrard
thelocal.fr, Quentin Evrard

Steven Cohen

Steven Cohen isn’t afraid to get in trouble for his work. In 2013 he was arrested for indecent exposure in Paris after he showed up at the Eiffel Tower dressed like a bird and was led around by his penis by a rooster. As a gay Jewish South African man, Cohen often uses confrontation in his art to draw attention to marginalized people.

Ivory Coast

The Ivory Coast has a turbulent history and maybe that’s why the country is teaming with incredible artists.

Ivorian artists have hurdles to overcome in their efforts to get their artistic voices heard, such as a dearth of galleries, collectives, or grants. However, that didn’t stop these 10 top contemporary Ivorian artists from creating art that speaks eloquently about the conditions of life in Ivory Coast.

Sources: News-World.us, JemsKokoBi.com, PaulSika.com, CreativeAfricaNetwork.com, GuichardArtSolutions.org, CaacArt.com

contemporaryand.com
contemporaryand.com

Jems Koko Bi

Jems Koko Bi is a sculptor who was born in Sifra. In 1997, he won a scholarship and left the country to live in Germany. It is probably only because of his immigration that Koko Bi is now relatively well-known on the international arts front. His sculptures often use detached body parts such as legs walking through a park or a boat full of severed heads, which is an appropriate metaphor coming from an artist who has been severed from his home country by strife.

ivoireculture.net
ivoireculture.net

Franck Fanny

Franck Fanny’s photographs are stunning because of their ability to portray everyday images from the Ivory Coast in a way that is realistic but without pity or judgment. He received some recognition internationally after being included in the 2013 Venice Biennale.

theprogressoflove.com
theprogressoflove.com

Valerie Oka

It is often difficult for women to penetrate the male-dominated world of art in Ivory Coast. Valeria Oka, who is one of the few female Ivorian artists to get any attention, grew up in France and not in the Ivory Coast. However, her art — which includes painting, sculpture, and performance – has a distinctly Ivorian influence in its brutality.

caacart.com
caacart.com

Aboudia

Abdoulaye Diarrasouba, who goes by the name Aboudia, is one of the most renowned contemporary Ivorian artists and has had exhibitions around the globe. His paintings have a childlike quality which amplifies the disturbing feelings produced by his depictions of coffins, skulls, soldiers, and other violent themes.

paulsika.com
paulsika.com

Paul Sika

Paul Sika is a young Ivorian photographer whose unique style has earned him international acclaim. He uses Technicolor to make overly saturated staged photos bursting with energy and vibrancy. His imagery gives us a new way of looking at African culture.

creativeafricanetwork.com
creativeafricanetwork.com

Nadia Beugre

When Nadia Beugre dances, it is powerful and thrillingly intense. The dancer-choreographer uses dance as a way to dig into themes such as Africa’s soiled past, suppression, and struggle. She often incorporates everyday objects such as plastic bottles or trash bags into her work, which takes it outside the realm of traditional dance and into performance art.

creativeafricanetwork.com
creativeafricanetwork.com

Nestor Da

Nestor Da is a self-taught Ivorian photographer who uses elements of collage to create brutal scenes. He often juxtaposes African and Western imagery, for example using collage to make a pair of intense blue eyes peer out of an African tribal mask, or putting white legs in nice shoes on a poor African family. He lives and works in Burkina Faso.

fratmat.info
fratmat.info

Jean-Baptiste Djeka Kouadio

Kouadio can be seen as a representative of young Ivorian artists in that he draws from multiple cultural influences, but merges and modernizes them in the process. His paintings and sculptures use African symbols to speak of identity and origins.

bruno-mignot.com
bruno-mignot.com

Camara Demba

Camara Demba was born in 1970 to a family of traditional sculptors who taught him how to make the traditional masks for which Africa is known. This can be seen in Demba’s work which uses elements of traditional sculpture to create very modern pieces, such as multi-colored handcrafted robots and other figurines.

africultures.com
africultures.com

Georges Momboye

Georges Momboye is an Ivorian dancer and choreographer who currently lives and works in Paris. Momboye is the grandson of an African tribal leader who led dance ceremonies and rituals. Thus, traditional dance has long been part of Momboye’s life. In his current work, he fuses these African dance roots with European-style ballet. His works are almost always very theatrical, using props and elements such as curtains to help create a narrative. He is considered to be one of the most representative artists in modern African dance.

Kenya

Kenyan artists are pushing the limits of expression in ways distinctly African and contemporary without just mimicking trends of the Western art scene.

Sources: Wamathai.com, CreativeAfricaNetwork.com, AkwaabaMusic.com, NYTimes.com, Nairobinow.Wordpress.com, Contemporaryand.com, YouTube.com, NaomiWanjiku.com, TheCultureTrip.com, WanjaKimani.com, Kuonatrust.org

theguardian.com
theguardian.com

Wangechi Mutu

Though she lives and works in New York City, Mutu is a native of Kenya and considered one of the most important contemporary African artists of recent times. She works in a wide range of media including video, installation, performance, sculpture, and collage.  No matter the medium, her work can be described as surreal. Unlike the original surrealists though, Mutu deals with topics such as feminism, identity, and violence in ways that are discomforting yet impossible to ignore.

afritorial.com
afritorial.com

Just a Band (collective)

The art collective Just a Band has videos that have gone massively viral, to the point that they are getting feature write-ups in The New York Times. They are being dubbed “Kenya’s first viral internet meme” by the likes of the Wall Street Journal and CNN.  They make music videos that draw on African mythology, old movies, and Japanese anime.  Don’t pigeonhole what the trio behind the collective does as purely music or music video. As Akwaaba Music said of their album, 82, “Deep and soulful vibes … are surrounded by straightforward urban expression and revolt … and modern day sarcasm.” Just a Band often uses elements of installation in its performances as well.

Kuona-Artist-Sidney-Magongo-8
kuonatrust.org

Sydney Mag’ong’o

Sydney Mag’ong’o is one of Kenya’s many hidden talents, but his name is becoming more resonant in the art world. The Nairobi-based painter has a contemporary and profound approach. His creations go beyond politics, religion and culture to find expression in beautiful color-and-shape fusions. Although his paintings remind some people of Picasso’s work, his perception of the contemporary world is considered unique. His art is full of emotion, vibrant colors and abstract shapes.

bbc.co.uk
bbc.co.uk

Peterson Kamwathi

Born in 1980, Kamwathi represents a new generation of Kenyan artists. He primarily works in printmaking and charcoal drawing, often using the image of a bull to represent Kenya as a country. Kamwathi’s imagery is incredibly powerful, as is the symbolism of using animals in place of people.

zurukenya.com
zurukenya.com

Uhuru Brown

The world might never know about Uhuru Brown because his chosen medium is graffiti.  However, we shouldn’t dismiss the importance of street art for transforming society – and it certainly has a much broader reach than art relegated to galleries. Brown’s works are considered masterpieces that urbanize traditional Kenyan motifs.

contemporaryand.com
contemporaryand.com

Ato Malinda

Born in 1981, Ato Malinda has many different influences. She grew up in Kenya, the Netherlands, and the U.S.A., studying art as well as molecular biology at the University of Texas. Her performance and installation pieces can be described as “brutal” in their imagery, which is appropriate considering that her works comment on the state of feminism in Africa as well as racial hierarchies.

cnn.com
cnn.com

Cyrus Kabiru

Cyrus Kabiru got a fair amount of attention on the global stage for his C-Stunners series — “glasses” made from found materials such as old scissors, scraps of metal and forks. The C-Stunners each have a story behind them and, when worn, could best be described as a blend of Clockwork Orange and steampunk.

theafricachannel.co.uk
theafricachannel.co.uk

Naomi Wanjiku Gakunga

Gakunga is a sculptress mostly known for the weavings she makes out of found objects.  The weavings look very delicate despite being made of rigid materials like scrap metal.  Through this juxtaposition, she is able to intertwine Kenyan weaving traditions and the contemporary landscape.

theculturetrip.com
theculturetrip.com

Wanja Kimani

Wanja Kimani was born in Kenya in 1986, though she currently lives and works in Ethiopia. Her work uses highly personal objects such as dresses, family photographs, and embroidery to evoke stories dealing with displacement, memory, and imagination.

theculturetrip.com
theculturetrip.com

Paul Onditi

Paul Onditi is Kenya’s own Kafka. His prints and illustrations often use dark tones and muted hues to depict strange, intimidating places. The work is expressive of the dark side of human life, yet there are still comic or absurd undertones to the imagery.

Sources: WallStreetJournal, Wikipedia.org, Angolarising.Blogspot.com, Contemporaryand.com, FormerWest.org, AfricaVenir.org, Sources: NehandaRadio.com, MovementRevolutionAfrica.com, Thandowako.blogspot.com, ArtThrob.co.za, ArtLabAfrica.com, TheGuardian.com, VoicesInColour.Wordpress.com, Zimbojam.com, Contemporaryand.com, NewsDay.co.zw, TheMojoGallery.com, Frieze.com, MQ.co.za, YBCA.org, Contemporaryand.com, 10and5.com, TheGuardian.com, HuffingtonPost.com