Joseph Amedokpo, The Godess of Iron
Joseph Amedokpo is one of Africa’s finest painters in modern art. He was born in a small village called Badougbe, in Western Africa. He now lives in Vogan, Togo, with his wife and five children. The surrounding area is full of history and culture including once was a slave shipping port, Ouidah, that has turned into a place where a Cult worships pythons. He draws most of his inspiration in his paintings from this unique history and culture. Red is his favorite color because it represents blood, life, soil, and is the color of many African gods. I chose to profile Joseph Amedokpo because he seems to me to be very humble. He paints on old burlap sacks and mixes and blends his own colors from local oils. He stays on top of current events and catastrophes. He recently has been selected to design the Dell RED which is gonna help benefit the elimination of AIDS in Africa.
I chose the painting, The Godess of Iron, because the colors are really catchy and I like the theme. Iron has been a huge player on the evolution of modern weapons. I think this painting focuses heavily on the machete and the rifle. The machete is a major tool used in Africa daily for farming (which could be represented by the bowl of grain at the bottom of the painting. It is also used heavily as a weapon in Africa along with the rifle. The shapes and colors really pop in this painting. I think that it represents the inventions created from iron can be good and bad.
cited
- http://globalbatik.net/joseph_amedokpo.html
- http://www.african-encounters.com/Artist-Joseph-Amedokpo_10.aspx
November 23, 2009 at 7:56 pm
Interesting piece! Great job on background info on the artist. The piece is different, it reminds me kind of a find the hidden picture. the weapons almost blend in but it also may be the use of colors. good job!
December 4, 2009 at 9:41 pm
I wasn’t a fan of this piece. Whenever I think of machetes I think of violence, even though the inclusion of a bowl of grain at the bottom of the work suggests that is not the intent of the work. I did find all the biographical information on the artist rather interesting. It is unique that he paints on burlap bags. I wonder if they ship or store grain in burlap bags? It would tie everything together really well if they did.
January 15, 2010 at 5:54 am
I also like this artwort from Joseph Amedokpo and this is how I understand it. The Godess of iron is the deity worshipped by the hunters. All the pieces necessary to a successful hunt are present in the paintings: the rifle, the spear, the bat, the shells in the bowl which thrown on the floor and by their position when falling will indicate the outcome of the hunt; and at last the long stick with a crown like object at its extremity which when shaken makes noise to call the Godess of Iron to look over their hunt.