Artsy has released its end-of-year market report and they have identified artists that made the most impact in the scene in 2022. On their list of 50 artists that generated the most interest on the platform, 5 of them, established and emerging, are African artists living in Africa and in the diaspora who have done incredibly well at auctions, exhibitions and art fairs this year.
- Aboudia
This year, Ivorian-born visual artist Abdoulaye Diarrassouba’s work has been exhibited widely and even offered at auction houses like Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips. He is known for his vibrant, large-scale mixed-media paintings which recall Jean-Michel Basquiat’s works and is inspired by the aesthetics of graffiti and traditional African carvings. The realized prices for his work on the secondary market have been between $49,000 to $612,878. This year, he made the list as one of the artists that sold the most expensive artworks in the world.
His work has been acquired by Saatchi Gallery, the Jean Pigozzi Collection of African Art, and the Nevada Museum of Art.
Image courtesy of ANA
You can follow the artist and his work here.
- Amoako Boafo
Amoako Boafo’s works have been auctioned and sold for more than $1 million this year. The Ghanaian artist whose works explore the multiple spaces for black joy, subjectivity and self-determination highlights his subjects’ unique gazes, poses, and dresses with his fingers. The realized prices for his work on the secondary market have been between $88,200 to $963,212. His work has been acquired for the collections of the Guggenheim Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Albertina Museum.
Image courtesy of Artsy
You can follow the artist and his work here.
- Isshaq Ismail
Ghanaian-born artist Isshaq Ismail is known for his distinctive abstract style and the colourfully distorted face and figure portraits. His work has been displayed for auctions in Christie’s, Sotheby’s, Phillips and Bonhams. This year, the realized prices for his artworks on the secondary market have been between $26,579 to $233,884. His works have been exhibited in galleries and art fairs like Nicholas Roman Fine Art, WTC The Hague Art Gallery, Efie Gallery, Gallery 1957, 1-54 London, Maddox Gallery, Ross-Sutton Gallery, and Art Miami.
Image courtesy of Sotheby’s
You can follow the artist and his work here.
- Cornelius Annor
Cornelius Annor is a contemporary Ghanaian artist. His group portraits celebrate and explore the vibrancy of everyday life. As a newcomer in the secondary marketplace, he has had his works estimated and realized between $30,000 to $94,400 at auction houses, Sotheby’s and Phillips. His work has been acquired for the collections of Bonhams, and he has been listed as one of the African artists that sold the most expensive artworks in the world this year. His work has been exhibited by Maruani Mercier Gallery and Rochemont Projects.
Image courtesy of Artsy
You can follow the artist and his work here.
- Tunji Adeniyi-Jones
Tunji Adeniyi-Jones draws on both his Yoruba heritage and diasporic experience to paint Black bodies that honours his ancestors’ ceremonies and celebrations. Represented by White Cube, Morán Morán, and Nicelle Beauchene Gallery this year, the artist has been committed to refining his art style. His works were featured in group shows at the Dak’art Biennale, the Aïshti Foundation, the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, and ICA Miami.
Image courtesy of Artsy
You can follow the artist and his work here.
