13th November 2023 11:30:01 AM
3 mins readIn the realm of colours and shapes, Ghanaian visual artist Amoako Boafo is leaving an indelible mark, captivating all who encounter his works. Imagine this – he recently pocketed a whopping $252,000, roughly GHC3m, from selling just one of his mind-blowing artworks!
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But hold on, there's more to this artistic prodigy than meets the eye. Amoako Boafo isn't your typical interviewee. At less than 40 years old, his canvases have graced the galleries of mega-dealer Larry Gagosian, who's declared him "the future of portraiture."
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Can you believe it? The superhero sketches from his childhood drawing battles are now evolving into million-dollar masterpieces!
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From competing with pals over superhero sketches to rubbing shoulders with art giants, Boafo's journey is nothing short of a Ghallywood plot.
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Growing up in the streets of Accra, Ghana, he went from supporting his mum and grandma to having his fingertip-painted portraits fetching seven figures at auctions.
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Oh, and did we mention that he's one of the first artists to send his work to space on Jeff Bezos's rocket? Talk about reaching for the stars!
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credit: ARTnews
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Born in 1984, Boafo is a self-taught maestro who started painting while his mum was away cooking up a storm in the kitchen. But it's not all paint and canvas for Boafo; he hustled as a semi-pro tennis player before someone angelically offered to pay his art school fees. And guess what? He graduated at the top of his class in 2008, clinching the title of Best Portrait Painter of the Year!
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Fast forward to 2018, and the art master decided to bless Boafo. His paintings, discovered on Instagram by none other than Kehinde Wiley (the guy who painted Obama!), catapulted him into the international art scene. Boafo went from selling his pictures for peanuts in Ghana to having buyers throw crazy amounts at his artwork at auctions.
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look from DIOR MEN'S SUMMER 2021 LOOKBOOK inspired by Amoako Boafo's works, photographed by JACKIE NICKERSON
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Boafo earned recognition as one of Time Magazine's 100 emerging leaders in 2021, featured in the annual TIME100 Next 2021 list.
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look from DIOR MEN'S SUMMER 2021 LOOKBOOK inspired by Amoako Boafo's works, photographed by JACKIE NICKERSON
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In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, everyone suddenly realized they were missing out on Boafo's brilliance. Museums and collectors raced to fill the void, and the price tags on Boafo's works soared to £2.5m – cha-ching!
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But here's the scoop – Boafo is more into painting than talking about it. "I paint because I love to create," he says. And guess what's stressing him out? Anything that drags him away from his studio. Tennis, on the other hand, that's just pure excitement!
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And hey, if you're in Accra, swing by Gallery 1957 – owned by Marwan Zahkem, the cool cat who snagged one of Boafo's early pieces.
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Boafo's self-portrait is stealing the show, signed "Amoako Boafo King." Rumor has it, he uses "King" either as his nickname or because, well, he's the king of the art scene!
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So, there you have it – Amoako Boafo, the guy turning space into an art gallery and turning canvas into cash. Keep your eyes on this paint-splattered shooting star because he's just getting started! #GhanatotheWorld
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