Third edition is dedicated to the Togolose emerging artistic scene
Ras Sankara, Agbantè, 2021. Performance photograph, 60 x 50cm. Courtesy of the artist.
Ras Sankara is the winner of the third edition of the ellipse prize dedicated to emerging artists living in Togo, as well as Togolese artists living in Africa. The ellipse Prize is an initiative from the endowment fund ellipse art projects which highlights each year artistic creation from sub-Saharan Africa or south-east Asia in France. Linked to a theme every year (Dreamy memory in 2023), the ellipse Prize wants to promote messages expressed by artists to engage a collective awareness about our environment.
After long and rich debates, Ras Sankara has been chosen among 5 finalists by an independent jury composed by contemporary art professionals including Togolese art scene specialists. The 2023 committee consisted of: Victoria Mann, director-Founder of the AKAA, ALSO KNOWN AS AFRICA, Atelier Ati – Ferdinand Kokou Makouvia and Juliette Delecour, founders of Artméssiamé, artistic residency in Togo, Armelle Malvoisin, journalist, curator, African art market specialist and Eric Wonanou, visual artist and curator. The 2023 finalists, chosen among 54 application files, were: Parmenas Awudza, Clément Gbegno, Ras Sankara, Koffi Seble and Thierry Tomety.
Truly involved and well known in his country, Ras Sankara will benefit from an exhibition during the international art fair AKAA – ALSO KNOWN AS AFRICA from the 20th until the 22nd of October, 2023, as well as professional media support.
Kossi Aféli Agboka, also known as Ras Sankara is a Togolese self-taught artist born in 1989. Although invested as a visual artist, he began performance art in 2015, today at the center of his practice, with his body as principal medium. For the artist devoted to the causes he defends, it’s essential to “kill the fear, resurrect courage with optimism, through photography, installation and performance”. Through involved interventions, he highlights sociopolitical issues and rises debates in order to generate reactions and reflections from the population, in an open space known to all: the street. Ras Sankara is also the founder of an association gathering artists that invest themselves into social actions.
For more information, please visit the ellipse prize.
