.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Elegantly poised, with her parted red lips hinting towards a smile or conversation and her hand gently placed upon her chest, Soleita (2019) captures our gaze. Placed against a neutral background, she exudes a regal confidence and grace—exemplary of Amoako Boafo’s ability to render the essential character of his sitters. Deftly reimaging the traditions of portraiture, Boafo centres Black subjectivity and redresses historic hierarchies of representation. His bold portraits feature friends, family and those he is inspired by. He paints his subjects’ skin with his fingers, creating tactile, marbled surfaces that are full of colour and life. At the core of these depictions is a tenderness and familiarity that addresses the Western-dominated canon while also capturing the individual nuances of each of his sitters.
The artist’s signature finger-painting technique is central to his portraits. Forgoing the typical tools of an artist, Boafo reaches a deeper level of intimacy by using his own skin to paint that of his sitters. Daubs and swirls of oil form their textural, dynamic complexions. In the present work, deep umber browns and blues coalesce into an almost sculptural, haptic presence that contains a trace of the artist’s touch. This lyrical manifestation of skin stands out vividly against the smooth white background. Soleita forms part of a body of work in which Boafo explores the use of negative space to throw his subjects’ physicality into relief. The result echoes the practices of Egon Schiele—with whom Boafo creatively engaged while studying in Austria—and his contemporary Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, who both enlist neutral platforms that enhance the presence of their sitters.
Growing up in Accra, Ghana, Boafo began teaching himself to paint as a child, before enrolling at the Ghanatta College of Art and design. Thereafter, he moved to Austria to attend the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna, where he was inspired by the portraiture of Schiele and other Vienna Secession artists. Citing Kerry James Marshall and Kehinde Wiley as important influences, Boafo has forged his own unique path of figuration. As an extension of his practice, the artist has recently opened dot.ateliers, a revolutionary artistic space in Accra designed to support and cultivate the local art scene by offering gallery spaces, residencies, a library and more. Soleita is an elegant and quietly powerful example of Boafo’s work that not only drives forward the canon of painted portraiture, but encompasses a rich sense of endless, unfolding potential.
The artist’s signature finger-painting technique is central to his portraits. Forgoing the typical tools of an artist, Boafo reaches a deeper level of intimacy by using his own skin to paint that of his sitters. Daubs and swirls of oil form their textural, dynamic complexions. In the present work, deep umber browns and blues coalesce into an almost sculptural, haptic presence that contains a trace of the artist’s touch. This lyrical manifestation of skin stands out vividly against the smooth white background. Soleita forms part of a body of work in which Boafo explores the use of negative space to throw his subjects’ physicality into relief. The result echoes the practices of Egon Schiele—with whom Boafo creatively engaged while studying in Austria—and his contemporary Lynette Yiadom-Boakye, who both enlist neutral platforms that enhance the presence of their sitters.
Growing up in Accra, Ghana, Boafo began teaching himself to paint as a child, before enrolling at the Ghanatta College of Art and design. Thereafter, he moved to Austria to attend the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna, where he was inspired by the portraiture of Schiele and other Vienna Secession artists. Citing Kerry James Marshall and Kehinde Wiley as important influences, Boafo has forged his own unique path of figuration. As an extension of his practice, the artist has recently opened dot.ateliers, a revolutionary artistic space in Accra designed to support and cultivate the local art scene by offering gallery spaces, residencies, a library and more. Soleita is an elegant and quietly powerful example of Boafo’s work that not only drives forward the canon of painted portraiture, but encompasses a rich sense of endless, unfolding potential.