Patrick Tagoe-Turkson
GHANA, B. 1978
Patrick Tagoe-Turkson’s work combines the all-encompassing way in which art is expressed in Ghanaian culture – vibrant, poetic and rhythmic. A recipient of many awards, Patrick has exhibited in Ghana, South Korea, South Africa, Austria, the United States and other countries. He is well known for his nature art. Tagoe-Turkson is a photographer and a performance artist as well and combines his practice with teaching. Patrick holds a Master of Fine Arts degree from the College of Art (KNUST), Ghana.
Deliberate and meticulous manipulation and alteration of plastic waste and discarded rubber into stunning and vivid explosions of colour, has become the distinctive feature of Patrick Tagoe-Turkson’s work. Further examination reveals the preoccupation of the artist with capturing and retelling stories, histories, dreams and hopes. The works connect with the viewer in a manner totally unrecognizable from its original form. Their mesmerizing, energetic, kaleidoscopic compositions achieve just that; materials having experienced a transformational journey in structure, value and purpose.
Tagoe-Turkson presents flip-flops found floating in the Atlantic Ocean in Southern Ghana as “Objects of Value”. For this series the mixed media artist acts as an archivist, environmentalist, a weaver, documentarian and a storyteller. He investigates themes that cut across memory, migration, adaptation, recovery and other social concerns. His practice incorporates a method of working through repetition and subtle balance, a type of comprehensive pattern for the exploration of traditional Ghanaian art, like Kente fabrics. Through these work, Tagoe-Turkson's intelligently plays with the tension between the mundane and the beautiful and the stories behind the transformation from waste to art.
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