CORNELIUS ANNOR
b. 1990, GhanaBorn in 1990 in Accra, Ghana, Cornelius Annor graduated from Ghanatta College of Art and Design in 2011. He paints portraits and figurative works that picture moments of community and intimacy set in domestic spaces. Annor’s subjects stem from memory and personal history in Ghana. With roots in personal memory and photography, the artist casts scenes of private life onto large-scale canvases. Annor’s paintings typically include arrangements of fabric, adding to the intimacy and evocativeness of the portraits. His use of traditional Ghanaian textiles lends a textural quality to his work, which has become characteristic of his artistic style. The backgrounds of the works often integrate similar patterns, establishing an atmosphere of layered memories, emotions, and experiences. Currently, he lives and works in Accra, Ghana and Brussels, Belgium.
Annor has cited family history and photography as major sources of inspiration for his artistic practice, and his works often reference photographs from his family’s photo albums. He describes his use of photography as a way to “reenact... past memories which seem lost, absent, forgotten or unknown.” Layered with skeins of paint, bolts of fabric, and rigorous draughtsmanship, Annor’s paintings renovate these referents, merging history with the present. His works excavate a personal photographic vernacular and telegraph the past through an intimate painterly vision.
Cornelius Annor’s work has been presented in exhibitions in Accra, London, and New York. His work is also held in permanent collections including Buxton Contemporary, Melbourne, Australia; Cuperior Collection, Germany; Espacio Tacuari, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Denver Art Museum, CO, USA; Institute of Contemporary Art Museum, Miami, USA; Norton Museum, West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; and The Bunker Artspace, West Palm Beach, Florida, USA. He is also the founder of C.Annor studio, a space dedicated to encouraging and supporting young artists in his hometown.
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