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Tate Modern Talk

Artist Talk: El Anatsui

11 October 2023 at 18.30–20.00
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El Anatsui, Ink Splash II 2012. Tate. © El Anatsui.

Join us for a unique opportunity to hear artist El Anatsui speak about his life and extraordinary career as his Hyundai Commission in the Turbine Hall opens to the public

One of the most distinctive artists working today, El Anatsui has developed a highly innovative approach to sculpture. Since the late 1990s he has experimented with liquor bottle-tops, the product of a global industry built on colonial trade routes. Interested in the changing histories of the objects he repurposes, Anatsui combines African aesthetic traditions with the global history of abstraction. Over several decades, his practice has explored the evolution of human civilisation, African decolonisation movements, histories of migration, and life’s existential journeys.

He is joined in conversation by curator Osei Bonsu to discuss the evolution and influences of his work from early experiments as a student in the 1960s to his latest large-scale compositions. They will discuss the key themes of his practice including trade, consumption and the environment.

The conversation is followed by audience Q&A.

El Anatsui

El Anatsui b. Anyako, Ghana (1944) has predominantly lived and worked in Nigeria. His experimental approach to sculpture has embraced a wide range of materials, including wood, ceramics and found objects. In 2015, Anatsui was awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 56th International Art Exhibition of the Biennale di Venezia and his works are held in major collections around the world. From 1996 to 2011 he also worked as Professor of Sculpture and Departmental Head at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

Osei Bonsu

Osei Bonsu is a British-Ghanaian curator, critic and art historian. He is currently Curator of International Art at Tate Modern and has worked as a contributing editor at frieze magazine. Bonsu has also lectured widely at universities and institutions around the world. His latest projects include curating the 2023 Hyundai Commission: El Anatsui and A World In Common: Contemporary African Photography exhibitions at Tate Modern.

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11 October 2023 at 18.30–20.00

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