Statements
“… When I create work… it is in my view a metaphor reflecting an alternative response to examine … possibilities and extend the boundaries in art. … My work can represent links in the evolving narrative of memory and identity.”
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El Anatsui, in 2010
“… I have experimented with quite a few materials. I also work with material that has witnessed and encountered a lot of touch and human use … and these kinds of material and work have more charge than material/work that I had done with machines.”
“… Several of the words that I use have such a range of meaning. I don’t want the language to inform. By giving it a context, you limit its ability to stretch. I want it to remain contexless so that it leads you anywhere.”
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El Anatsui on the role of language in his work, as featured in an episode from the ART21 “Exclusive” series.
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El Anatsui. Photo: El Anatsui Studio