Owusu ankomah biography examples
Immanuel Kant, Owusu-Ankomah and the Hunger for the Absolute : A Multicultural Exploration at the Intersection of Word and Image
Immanuel Kant, Owusu-Ankomah and the Hunger for the Absolute
A Multicultural Exploration at the Intersection of Word and Image
Oluwatoyin Vincent Adepoju
Compcros
Comparative Cognitive Processes and Systems
"Exploring Every Corner of the Cosmos in Search of Knowledge"
Prelude to the Microcron No.14
The hunger will not let me rest, calling to me from a distance vast and inscrutable, resolving itself into a constellation of circles, evoking all that was, is and may be.
Human reason has the peculiar fate in one sphere of its cognitions that it is burdened with questions which it cannot dismiss, since they are given to it as problems by its own nature, but which it also cannot answer, since they transcend every faculty of the mind.
Even then, even if the darkness of night has let down its curtains, I shall journey by whispers of light from the east, O you who are rich in beauty, here am I, a beggar, following the wondrous veiled gazelle, who points with red finger tips and winks with eyelids, enkindler of the fire within my heart, driver of the reddish white camels, in pursuit of the flash of the brilliant stones.
Abstract
A dramatisation of the power of the hunger for the Absolute in relation to sensitivity to the grandeur of existence, through a very brief study of aspects of the thought of 18th century German philosopher Immanuel Kant, correlated with verbal and visual expressions by thinkers from different cultural and geographical contexts.
The art of c Owusu-Ankomah’s charged paintings on canvas depict an alternate world wherein monumental human figures – his core motif – are shown moving within an ocean of signs that surround, support and, in fact, define them. The way in which these figures coexist and interact with various symbolic sets has developed through distinct phases over time, reflecting Owusu-Ankomah’s own journey of spiritual discovery. His early work drew heavily on the ancient traditions of African rock-painting and masquerade, before his figures shed their masks and body paintings to become unashamedly visible. Finally, naked and powerful, these eloquent actors became covered in scripts of complex symbols that, in a studied trompe l’oeil effect, camouflage their finely sculpted bodies against alternating backgrounds of relevant and significant signs. With this new work Owusu-Ankomah further develops these possibilities, adding further visual signs of his own invention to the customary lexicon of adinkra symbols which each represent a particular concept used by the Akan-speaking peoples of Ghana. In the same Akan language ‘kusum’ refers to sacred sites involved in the secret performances of mystery rites. By developing new symbols, such as the circle of shining stars which seems to entrance the main figure in the image above, Owusu-Ankomah yokes together ancient traditions of secret knowledge with modern speculations about the mysterious nature of reality derived from modern theoretical physics, which predict the parallel coexistence of multi-dimensional universes within a single ‘multiverse.’ Owusu is a both surname and given name in the Akan language. The name is originally from the Akan people of Ghana. Owusu is one of the most common Akan surnames or given names in Ghana. However, it is a real name; thus, there are both male and female versions. (male: "OWUSU" and female: "OWUSUA") which means "Strong-Willed and Determined" in Akan. It is the second most common surname in Ghana, with one in 80 people having this name. Notable people with the name include: Owusu-Ankomah studied Fine Arts at the Ghanatta College in Accra before moving to Bremen, Germany. His paintings have been exhibited internationally, touring Germany, USA, UK, Senegal, South Africa; and Cuba. He has also collaborated with designer Giorgio Armani to develop a line of clothing for the Red Campaign, which raises awareness for the Global Fund to fight AIDS in Africa. His works are included in many important collections, including the British Museum, London, UK; the Hood Museum of Art, Hanover, USA; the Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, USA; and Renaissance Capital, Moscow, Russia. For sales enquiries please contact: Or call + 44 (0)20 7242 7367Owusu-Ankomah – Movement to the Microcron
Description
Owusu
OWUSU-ANKOMAH
Owusu-Ankomah’s distinctive paintings depict an alternate world wherein monumental human figures float and shift within an ocean of emblems that surround, support, and in fact, define them. The process by which these figures coexist and interact with various iconic and symbolic sets has developed through distinct phases over time, reflecting Owusu-Ankomah’s own journey of discovery. According to Owusu-Ankomah, ‘I am an artist who paints for humankind and who just happens to come from Africa.’
Owusu-Ankomah
View below for career highlights and works for sale by the artist.
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Born in 1956 in Sekondi, Ghana. Lives and works in Sekondi, Ghana.
Selected Solo shows 2014 Microcron Begins, October Gallery, London, UK 2011 Microcron - Kusum: Secret Signs - Hidden Meanings, October Gallery, London, UK Owusu-Ankomah - Prelude to the Microcron, ARTCO Gallery, Herzogenrath, Germany 2008 Stepping Out, ARTCO Gallery, Herzogenrath, Germany Body & Soul, Nomad Gallery, Brussels, Belgium 2006/7 Traces of the Future, Iwalewa-Haus, Bayreuth, Germany and Gall