Voodoo cult
Voodoo is the source of Togolese culture and is practiced by more than half of the population. It appeared in the last decades of the 16th century on the banks of the Mono River between Benin and Togo. The voodoo cult is based on the supreme god Sègbo Lissa, surrounded by 150 deities and invisible forces, including Mami Wata (goddess of water) and Hêvisso (god of thunder). He can be found on the Akodessewa market (fetish market)
in Lomé. The objects, masks and statues, help man to attract the benevolence of the supernatural world as a whole. The priest invokes the help of Papa Legba at each ceremony to facilitate the exchange between the two worlds. Forbidden by the colonists, the cult became secret, then integrated the Catholic rites. This is how a "Christian voodoo" appeared in the 1950s. These contributions have contributed to the iconographic diversity of voodoo objects. Natural materials and anthropomorphic features characterize most productions. Still very present in the daily life of the Togolese, voodoo inspires musicians and visual artists. Let's stay along the Mono boulevard, in Lomé, to explore the International Museum of African Art. In a house surrounded by a garden, superb pieces gathered by the collector René David invite you to discover an art that commands respect. More than 1,600 objects (statues, door sculptures, engravings, pottery) in wood, terracotta, iron or bronze reflect the variety of African ethnic groups. The museum was taken over by the collector Ching Heng Cheng who completed the collection with other African works. The many facets of Togolese culture are presented at the National Museum in Lomé. The local history is told through painted maps, drawings and photos of the past, as well as all kinds of objects including woodcarvings.Modern Plasticians
In the absence of a higher art school, Togolese artists are self-taught or trained abroad. The first ones, who stayed in the country, willingly open the doors of their workshops. The latter make a career in Europe but return to invest in events intended to promote Togolese culture. Thus, we now meet individual talents more than currents.
The modern period seems to begin with Paul Ahyi (1930-2010). Official artist of the State, he is the one who drew the national flag. Trained in Dakar, Paris and Lyon, this sculptor, painter, architect and author returned to Togo with a style impregnated with the West, and a strong desire to move the lines. He is hailed by all as the only personality to have had influence on cultural decisions. His monumental works, mosaics and sculptures, now decorate the squares, public parks and buildings of the capital and a museum was born, the Agnassan Paul Ahyi Museum
. His joie de vivre is reflected in all aspects of his production.Jimi Hope, whose real name is Koffi Senaya (1956-2019), is also multidisciplinary. Hope combined his talents as a painter, sculptor, and musician to great effect. Known as the first African rock singer, he left among his last works the fresco Le Chemin de la paix
, in the heart of the city of Lomé, along the National 1. This collective project, the last one in which the artist participated before passing away, brought together some twenty Togolese visual artists. Kossi Assou says he was lucky to have been able to attend school in Abidjan. As a visual artist and designer, he does not fail to support contemporary art in Togo. After his studies, he decided to share his knowledge in his workshop. In 1993, he founded the Artistik cultural space, which was extended by the Ewolé festival. For nine years, the event welcomes artists from everywhere. What was the first meeting of contemporary art in Togo was closed due to lack of funding.Current scene
President Faure Gnassingbé, a great lover of art, has set up a fund to support culture. He is behind the Path of Peace
, the collective work of a selection of Togolese artists.The opening of the palace of Lomé
goes in this direction. In the program of the cultural center, exhibitions pay homage to established values such as the designer Kossi Aguessy, and present new talents. Thus the place supports the project "TogoYeye" (Togo Nouveau in Ewe), intended to celebrate Togolese creatives such as the photographer Delali Ayivi.However, among the few art galleries that have been established in Togo, few have weathered the storms. Let us point out the AF Gallery dedicated to primary and contemporary arts. It notably defends the artist Camille Tété Azankpo who hijacks objects such as enamel basins and metal trays. Like most of his contemporaries, he exhibits in his studio in Lomé, nestled at the bottom of a garden. Galerie Néo has chosen the digital format to last. In its online format, the gallery led by artist Kobla Eric Wonanu, known as Cham, encourages emerging artists.
The Togolese creation is known outside the borders.
The self-taught painter born in 1986, Richard Laté Body Lawson, began with calligraphy. His workshop, annexed to his house, is full of objects. His contemplative creations question the eye. Concerned about the environment, he alerts us to the pollution of the ocean floor in his abstract works. Recently, he has been publishing his work digitally.
Appreciated in the United States, the painter Kodjovi Olympio started out in the streets of Los Angeles where he quickly made a name for himself. Compared to Jackson Pollock, his abstract works of an impulsive nature are a sensation, as at the Art Basel in Miami. He has not forgotten Togo, where he participated in the3rd edition of Western Voodoo, an artistic event that brings together artists from various fields in a caravan. This project was initiated by the passionate Alain Fassier, founder of Galerie AF. During its previous editions, Western Voodoo welcomed on board Sokey Edorh, born in 1955, for whom travel and creation are intimately linked. After studying philosophy, he began studying engraving in Bordeaux and Paris. Exhibited throughout the world, he associates like no other the African realities and the Western abstraction in works including red earth. While his works, detached from any quest for "beauty", are shown in the United States and Germany, Sokey Edorh has chosen to establish his studio in Lomé.Togolese sculpture
Togolese artists also excel in sculpture. Among the great talents of this art rooted in African traditions, Goha Atisso was awarded at the international competition of sculpture in Egypt. This young artist will exhibit for the first time in 2019, at the contemporary art gallery Négrillis in Lomé. Atisso's Totems
, his carved wooden giants, are embellished with salvaged objects, cans and scraps of various materials, in order to raise awareness of environmental protection while paying tribute to his ancestors. Recycling is at the heart of the concerns of contemporary sculptors. Camille Tété Azankpo associates paper, advertising posters and enamelled basins with wood. Serge Anoumou uses fabric to give form to his characters. Doé Mensah, a former student of the Abidjan School of Fine Arts, recovers sawdust and canvas to tell stories through images. He is also inspired by music to give rhythm to his visual universe.Sitou Matthia, pioneer of graffiti
In the 2000s, Sitou's artistic qualities were acclaimed in the urban art world. Passionate about drawing, he immersed himself in the hip-hop culture. In Togo, graffiti is still in its infancy. Only Max de Campos, his model, painted on the walls. He trained in graphic design, then during the Ouaga Hip-Hop festival in Burkina Faso, he had the trigger: he wanted to be an actor in urban art. For this, he participated in several events across the African continent, such as The Wall in Togo, to promote graffiti on a scene in full explosion.
Based in Paris, the artist traditionally likes to make his talent travel. Senegal, Belgium, Benin or Switzerland, he travels the world to spread his frescoes everywhere. In the Paris region, he works to embellish the public space, particularly in Vitry-sur-Seine, a mecca for street art
. The Togolese graffiti artist has created a fabulous multicolored chameleon. It should be noted that this motif is a strong symbol in the voodoo culture, the chameleon being the one who transmits the divine message to men.His chameleon also decorates a wall in the rue de l'Ourcq in Paris, which he shares with DaCruz. There, the reptile evokes the diversity of the neighborhood. Because Sitou likes to be inspired by the environment in which he paints. Involved in the Kin-graff festival, which takes place in Congo, he uses his art for communication and education. Messages painted on walls have the advantage of lasting longer than words
... In Togo, in educational murals, health issues come to the fore. In 2020, the project "Djé-Ayé, Art to Raise Awareness" aimed to raise awareness about the Covid-19 pandemic among marginalized people in Togo, especially street children. The messages conveyed by the image are more powerful than any speeches, because they are readable at a glance. However, the fresco campaign was accompanied by awareness-raising activities on preventive measures. What better way to reach children than to involve them? This is how ten murals were created in collaboration with the children of the capital, specifically the 3,000 young people who are left to their own devices. In doing so, they benefited from an introduction to drawing and artistic crafts. Prior to this, they were invited to submit drawings representing the health measures of their choice. The artists were then inspired by these models to create murals that can be seen in the streets of Lomé. When art is good for your health!
