ABOUDIA
NOVEMBER 5 -
DECEMBER 23, 2022
in collaboration with Ethan Cohen Gallery
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FOREWORD.......................................................................................................................................... BIOGRAPHY CV............................................................................................................................................................... AVAILABLE WORKS........................................................................................................................ 1 - 2 3 - 4 5 - 6 7 - 24 INDEX
FOREWORD
West Chelsea Contemporary is proud to present Aboudia, in collaboration with Ethan Cohen Gallery. Abdoulaye Diarrassouba, known as Aboudia, chronicles the street scene in his city of Abidjan, the capital of Côte d’Ivoire, through expressive, large-scale canvases. In recent years, Aboudia has become one of the most prominent figures in African Contemporary Art with his works garnering international acclaim. This solo exhibition features six new works created by the artist over the last year.
Aboudia's distinctive style, which has drawn comparisons with the iconic work of Jean-Michel Basquiat, finds inspiration in the collision of the graffiti culture of Abidjan and the traditional wood carvings of West Africa. Aboudia calls this style 'nouchi', a reference to the slang spoken in the streets of Abidjan, which is a hybrid of Ivorian and French vocabulary Since the 2011 Ivorian civil war, the artist’s urban landscapes have been haunted by trauma; armed soldiers, ominous skulls, and a populace hemmed in by danger Recent work continues to grapple with the hardships of daily life, and the social inequalities of the downtown environment. Through his work, Aboudia regularly returns to the subject of childhood and childlike innocence as a narrative voice for society
Often claustrophobic and oppressive, his paintings achieve a careful balance between pathos and aggression. While much of his recurring imagery speaks to unthinkable brutality, Aboudia’s bright color palettes reinforce the enduring innocence of the children who live amid the chaos. Aboudia is particularly interested in the link between these marginalized children and graffiti as a mode of communication, which allows them to “express what [is] deep within them ”
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Much like the murals created by the street kids he portrays, Aboudia’s own works often incorporate found materials such as newspapers and magazine cutouts to create his heavily layered canvases mixing collage, acrylic paint, and oil stick. “I pick them up from the street,” he says. “Out of rubbish bins, off the pavement. I use cardboard, charcoal and pencil, to reflect the reality of these children. They draw their dreams using chalk and charcoal and anything else they can find.” Today, Aboudia is one of the biggest names in contemporary African art; in 2021 he was listed as one of the top ten most sold living artists and this past year the artist represented the Ivory Coast at the Venice Biennale. Aboudia has exhibited widely across Côte d’Ivoire and in London, Paris, New York, and Marrakesh, among other international cities His works have been bought by some of the world’s most established collectors, including Jean Pigozzi, Frank Cohen, and Charles Saatchi, who featured Aboudia’s works in the Pangea exhibition in 2014 at his namesake gallery in London.
The vivid colors, dynamism, and raw authenticity of Aboudia’s work create palpable energy and a distinct visual universe of phantasmagorical visions. West Chelsea Contemporary is honored to present, in collaboration with Ethan Cohen Gallery, these six new paintings by one of the most exciting contemporary artists who has proved himself as the voice for his generation.
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Ivorian, b. 1983 ABOUDIA
Abdoulaye Diarrassouba, known as Aboudia, chronicles the street scene in his city of Abidjan, the capital of Côte d’Ivoire In his vibrant, large-scale mixed-media paintings and drawings, which recall those of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Aboudia takes inspiration from the aesthetics of graffiti and traditional African carvings. He has depicted youths in his city’s toughest neighborhoods and the violent postelection conflict that ravaged Abidjan in 2011 While his recurring skull, soldier, and bullet motifs speak to unthinkable trauma and brutality, Aboudia’s bright color palettes reinforce the enduring innocence of the children who live amid the chaos Aboudia has exhibited widely across Côte d’Ivoire and in London, Paris, New York, and Marrakesh, among other cities. His work has been acquired by Saatchi Gallery, the Jean Pigozzi Collection of African Art, and the Nevada Museum of Art, and on the secondary market, it has sold for six figures.
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1983 ABOUDIA
SOLO EXHIBITIONS Ivorian, b.
Enjaillement à Babi, Galerie Cécile Fakhoury, Paris, France
Nouchi Graffiti, Ethan Cohen Gallery, New York, NY
Aboudia, the Dinka, and the Gogo, Ethan Cohen Gallery, New York, NY
Diable Rouge, Jack Bell Gallery
Tete de bit, Jack Bell Gallery, London
Anges Déchus, Jack Bell Gallery, London
Portraits des Nouchis, Jack Bell Gallery, London
Djoly Du Mogoba, Jack Bell Gallery, London
Aboudia, Gawa Dangoro, Jack Bell Gallery, London
Where Are You Diana Fardon?, Ethan Cohen Gallery, New York Light &
Talking Faces, Piasa, Paris
Talking Heads, Ethan Cohen, New York, NY
I HAVE A DREAM at Out of Africa Gallery, Barcelona
Aboudia, Bombe Fantome, Jack Bell Gallery, London
Môgô Dynasty, Galerie Cecile Fakhoury, Abidjan
Nouchi Dream, Ethan Cohen New York
Sossoroh Urbain, Jack Bell Gallery, London
African Dawn, Ethan Cohen New York
Trin Trin Ba-By, Jack Bell Gallery, London, UK
Quitte Le Pouvoir, Jack Bell Gallery, London
Les Derniers Travaux d’Aboudia, Galerie Cecile Fakhoury, Abidjan
The Battle for Abidjan, Jack Bell Gallery, London
Solo exposition at Goethe-Institute, Johannesburg
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Solo exhibition at Centre Culturel Franco-Guinéen, Conakry, Guinea 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2009
Dark, Thompson Gallery, Ethan Cohen
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2022 2021
La Biennale Di Venezia, Ivory Coast Pavilion, The Dreams of A Story,
2015
Art Formula, Whatever Artspace, Hong Kong
Art Miami, Ethan Cohen Gallery
The Armory Show, Helwaser Gallery
Winter Group Show, Out of African Gallery, Barcelona
1-54 Marrakech, Galerie Cécile Fakhoury, Morocco
VOLTA Basel 14, Ethan Cohen Gallery, Basel, Switzerland
Devil in Disguise, Jack Bell Gallery, London, UK
Regarding Africa: Contemporary Art & Afro-Futurism, Tel Aviv Museum
of Art, Israel
Summer Exhibition, Royal Academy of Arts, London
PANGEA II, Saatchi Gallery, London
PANGEA, Saatchi Gallery, London
ACTIVITY
2018 2011 Opened the Aboudia Foundation, Bingerville, Côte d'Ivoire
Honorary mention in German TV ZDF documentary about the post-
Vencie election crisis in Ivory Coast (ZDF Infokanal)
MUSEUM / PRIVATE COLLECTIONS
Saatchi Gallery collection, UK
Jean Pigozzi collection François Pinault collection Olympic Games 2012
Palais de la Culture, Abidjan
Centre Culturel Franco-Guinéen, Conakry, Guinea
Embassy of Ivory Coast, Conakry, Guinea Governor of Abidjan
City Hall of Bingerville, Abidjan
The BICICI bank
Simon de Pury collection
The Royal Collection of the King of Morocco
Nevada Museum New York
Tel Aviv Museum of Art
2019 2018 2017
2014 6
Aboudia
Trois Soeurs Et Moi (Three Sisters And Me), 2022
Acrylic, spray paint, collage, and oil stick on canvas
59 x 59 in
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Aboudia La Fête Du Samedi Soir (Saturday Night Party), 2022
Acrylic, spray paint, collage, and oil stick on canvas
59 x 48 in
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Aboudia
Orange Is The New Black (Orange Est Le Nouveau Noir), 2022
Acrylic, spray paint, collage, and oil stick on canvas
48 x 48 in
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Aboudia
Quand perdons-nous notre innocence (When do we lose our innocence), 2022
Acrylic, spray paint, collage, and oil stick on canvas
48 x 48 in
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Aboudia
Prends Cinq (Take Five), 2022
Acrylic, spray paint, collage, and oil stick on canvas
48 x 59 in
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Aboudia
Finest Hour (La Plus Belle Heure), 2022
Acrylic, spray paint, collage, and oil stick on canvas
59 x 59 in
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Aboudia
Untitled, 2016
Mixed media on canvas
45 x 77 in
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Aboudia Les Enfants d'Abidjan Rouge-Orange, 2021
Acrylic and oil stick on canvas
59 x 118 in
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Aboudia
Untitled, 2013
Acrylic and mixed media on canvas
37 x 59 in
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