Environment and Object

The definition of a new African artist is as broad and diverse as the continent itself; and the stories these artists tell are at once uplifting and devastating, as are their nations' histories. This book focuses on the impact of the environment on contemporary African life and the use of found objects and appropriated materials in current African art. Artists from the oil-rich Niger Delta create images of the region's ecological destruction, impoverishment, and despair. Works from the Congo and South Africa depict abandoned mines and convict labour. Also included are El Anatsui's constructs made from bottle caps and wire and Romuald Hazoume's clever masks, pieced together from discarded cans and obsolete telephone parts. Together these artists have created a multi-dimensional portrait of a continent with rich cultures, multiple challenges, and a creative and resourceful population of inspiring artists.