C IS FOR CÔTE D’IVOIRE

Jean-Michel Basquiat and Jean Dubuffet had a child. He’s Ivorian and very talented but does not care about his place in the Western tradition because he was inspired by the graffiti done by kids in his home city of Abidjan. Meet Aboudia, who at 34 years is one of the rising stars of African and International art scenes, and one of the most exciting wave of artists who blend the borders between fine art and art brut.

Perhaps it’s the abundance of color, or the comic-like appearance of the figures in his art that makes it so accessible and easy to like by even someone who isn’t too into art (perhaps Uniqlo should consider doing a collection with Aboudia?) But it’s the complicated positioning of bodies on the canvas, the way the figures relate to each other and the symbols around them, like skulls, guns, cars and urban structures, and the dizzying business of the dystopian landscapes behind them, that make Aboudia’s paintings so reflective of the life on this planet today. Simulatenously exhilarating and horrifying, these are truly the images of our post-atomic apocalyptic existence.