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About

Kwesi Botchway creates paintings and installations with content and material sourced from Accra, Ghana, where he lives and works. The paintings often feature figures within a domestic scene, facing backwards to the viewer, looking out at the audience from a mirror. Botchway paints his figures with his signature use of deep purple-black undertones and red-toned eyes. In Botchway’s compositions, the act of seeing becomes a material, geographic, and refracted meditation where both figure and audience echo their respective witnessing gazes. For Botchway, these gazes highlight moments of joy and support, evoking the artist’s intent to simultaneously express positive and self-affirming images of the Black body and to encourages participation in pleasures historically denied to the Black body.

Kwesi Botchway was born in 1994, in Accra, Ghana, where he continues to live and work. He is the founder of WorldFaze in Accra, a studio and residency space that focuses on supporting young local artists. Kwesi studied art at the Ghanatta College of Art and Design in Accra before enrolling at the Academy of Visual Arts in Frankfurt, Germany. Botchway was nominated for the GUBA Awards USA as an Influential Artist in 2019, and has been featured in the NY Times, Financial Times, Flash Art, The Art Newspaper, ArtNews, and Frieze. His paintings are included in such public collections as the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, the Vanhaerents Foundation, Belgium, the High Fashion Foundation, New York, the Israel Museum, Tel Aviv, and the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne.

Selected Works

This image depicts an artwork by Kwesi Botchway titled "Perfectly Poised." This artwork was created in 2024 and measures 40" x 30" [HxW] (101.6 x 76.2 cm)41 ¹⁄₄" x 31 ¹⁄₄" x 2 ¹⁄₄" [HxWxD] (104.77 x 79.37 x 5.71 cm) framed. Its medium is Oil on canvas.
Kwesi Botchway
“Perfectly Poised,” 2024
This image depicts an artwork by Kwesi Botchway titled "New Yorker at Heart." This artwork was created in 2024 and measures 40" x 30" [HxW] (101.6 x 76.2 cm)41 ¹⁄₄" x 31 ¹⁄₄" x 2 ¹⁄₄" [HxWxD] (104.77 x 79.37 x 5.71 cm) framed. Its medium is Oil on canvas.
Kwesi Botchway
“New Yorker at Heart,” 2024
Kwesi Botchway “Young, Gifted, And Black,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway
“Young, Gifted, And Black,” 2023
This image depicts an artwork by Kwesi Botchway titled "Swimming Lessons." This artwork was created in 2023 and measures 88" x 79" x 1" [HxWxD] (223.52 x 200.66 x 2.54 cm); 89 ³⁄₄" x 80 ³⁄₄" x 2 ¹⁄₄" [HxWxD] (227.96 x 205.1 x 5.71 cm) Framed. Its medium is Oil on canvas.
Kwesi Botchway
"Swimming Lessons," 2023
Kwesi Botchway “The Night Is Young,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway
“The Night Is Young,” 2023
This image depicts an artwork by Kwesi Botchway titled "Obsessed With Yellow Gold." This artwork was created in 2023 and measures 48" x 36" [HxW] (121.92 x 91.44 cm); 49" x 36" x 2 ¹⁄₄" [HxWxD] (124.46 x 91.44 x 5.71 cm) Framed. Its medium is Oil on canvas.
Kwesi Botchway
“Obsessed With Yellow Gold,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway “Afro Goddess,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway
“Afro Goddess,” 2023
This image depicts an artwork by Kwesi Botchway titled "Ataamέi shi ha wọ (Ancestors left it to us)." This artwork was created in 2023 and measures 54" x 19" x 19" [HxWxD] (137.16 x 48.26 x 48.26 cm). Its medium is Mirrors and cloth.
Kwesi Botchway
"Ataamέi shi ha wọ (Ancestors left it to us)," 2023
Kwesi Botchway “Iced Cuban Chain Reflect,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway
“Iced Cuban Chain Reflect,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway “Elizabeth Okine,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway
“Elizabeth Okine,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway “Black Baker Boy Cap,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway
“Black Baker Boy Cap,” 2023
Kwesi Botchway “Lady in blonde bob wig,” 2022
Kwesi Botchway
“Lady in blonde bob wig,” 2022
Kwesi Botchway “Beach Habits,” 2022
Kwesi Botchway
“Beach Habits,” 2022

Exhibitions

Born in 1994, Accra, Ghana
Lives and works in Accra, Ghana

Selected Solo and Two Person Exhibitions

2023
"Kwesi Botchway: There’s More Than What the Eye Witnesses," Vielmetter Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
2022
"Rumors of Blackness," Maruani Mercier Gallery, Brussels, Belgium
2021
THE ARMORY SHOW, Booth P19, Gallery 1957, New York, NY
2020
"Becoming As Well As Being," Gallery 1957, London, UK
"Dark Purple Is Everything Black," Gallery 1957, Accra, Ghana
2017
Hos Oona Galleri & Sundhed, Vejle, Denmark

Selected Group Exhibitions

2023-2024
"Accra! The Rise of a Global Art Community," The Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH
2023
"Pop Masters: Art From the Mugrabi Collection," HOTA Home of the Arts, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
"Filling in the Pieces in Black," Maurani Mercier, Brussels, Belgium & Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
"Perpetual Portrait," Vielmetter Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
"It's here, it's there, it's everywhere," Ghana National Museum, Accra, Ghana
"It's Time," Vielmetter Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
2022-2023
"Unlimited," Gallery 1957, Kempinski Hotel, Gold Coast, Ghana
"When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting," Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa, Cape Town, South Africa
2021
"[West] African Resistance," Gallery 1957, (In Collaboration with Christie's Dubai), Dubai, UAE
"Resistance," Maruani Mercier Gallery, Knokke, Belgium
"Homecoming : Aesthetic of the cool," Gallery 1957, Accra, Ghana
"Wake-up Call," blijven liggen/laten staan, Collection Tanguy & Bieke Van
"Quickenborne," Platform 6a by Deweer, Otegem, Belgium
2020
"Cgunu/Nkambom Art Exhibition," Cape Town, South Africa
2019
Chalewote Street Art Festival, Pidginimaginarium, Accra, Ghana
Sabolai Radio Music Festival, Accra, Ghana
2018
James Town Caf Exhibition, Prince Charles and Camilla Duchess of Cornwall visit to Ghana, Chalewote Street Art Festival, PARAOTHER 2018, Accra, Ghana
Artist Alliance Gallery, Accra, Ghana
2017
Hos Oona Galleri & Sundhed, Denmark
Chalewote Street Art Festival, wata mata, Accra, Ghana
Qaba Exhibition, Alliance Francaise, Accra, Ghana
Ghana Culture Forum / National Theatre, Accra, Ghana
2016
"Let’s Talk Shit project," Alliance Francaise, Accra, Ghana
555 Art Exhibition, Accra, Ghana
Africa Contemporary Art Gabah, Hamburg, Germany
Hos Oona Galleri og Sundhed, Vejle, Denmark
Chalewote Street Art Festival, Spirit Robot, Accra, Ghana
Dzala Butiq, Brazil House, Accra, Ghana
Novica Gallery, Accra, Ghana
2015
Golden Tulip Hotel, Accra, Ghana
Ghana National Museum, Accra, Ghana
Ghanatta College of Art and Design, Art Center, Accra, Ghana

Bibliography

2024
Brownell, Gianne. "From Africa to Hong Kong, a Gallery’s Influence Grows," The New York Times, March 20 (Link)
2023
Ahluwalia, Navi. "Ghanaian Painter Kwesi Botchway Explores The Black Gaze In LA Solo Exhibition," HypeBae, June 16 (Link)
Ghassemitari, Shawn. "Kwesi Botchway Explores the Black Gaze in Latest Exhibition," HypeArt, June 15 (Link)
Baumgardner, Julie. "‘This Is a Moment They Have to Grab’: How Ghana’s Art Stars Are Building a Movement to Outlast the Speculators and Market Frenzies," Artnet, April 12 (Link)
O'Leary, Erin. "It’s Time | Vielmetter Los Angeles," Photography, March 1
Larsson, Chari. "Did pop art have its heyday in the 1960s? Perhaps. But it is also utterly contemporary," The Conversation, February 21 (Link)
Mousse Magazine Staff. "“It’s Time” at Vielmetter, Los Angeles," Mousse Magazine, February 18 (Link)
Nys Dambrot, Shana. "A Pair of Exhibitions Renovate Portraiture and Perfection at Vielmetter Los Angeles," LA Weekly, February 9
Clayton, Dominique. "The Best Black Art Shows in Los Angeles Right Now," Cultured, January 30
2022
Proctor, Rebecca Anne. "Artist-Led Spaces Are Proliferating Around the World, Filling a Gap Caused by Dwindling Public Funding and Market Pressures," ArtNet, December 26 (Link)
Tali, Selorm. "Kwesi Botchway: Ghanaian artist sells out masterpiece work after days of release," The Pulse, July 14 (Link)
Opera News Staff. "Kwesi Botchway showcases Captivating Paintings in Brussels," Opera News, May (Link)
Essien, Vanessa. "Kwesi Botchway: Using Art as a Tool for Change and Inspiring the Next Generation of Artists," Prazzle, March 10 (Link)
Takac, Balasz. "Kwesi Botchway Celebrates Black Beauty at Maruani Mercier," Widewalls, February 16 (Link)
2021
Stoilas, Helen, Daniel Cassady, Nancy Kenney and Gabriella Angeleti, and Wallace Ludel"New and noteworthy: see what the Armory Show's younger galleries are bringing to the fair," The Art Newspaper, September 2 (Link)
Black, Holly. "Kwesi Botchway: “I Wanted Viewers to Appreciate All Different Parts of Me”," Elephant, May 7 (Link)
Rotinwa, Ayodeji. "As the market for their artists booms, African galleries take control by expanding to the West," The Art Newspaper, April 20 (Link)
Rotinwa, Ayodeji. "Cool Intentions," Artforum, April 14 (Link)
Barnes, Ekow. "The Culture List: Celebrating Groundbreaking Black Artists Around The World," Ebony, April 4 (Link)
Rea, Naomi. "Studio Visit: Kwesi Botchway on the Importance of Painting Faces and Celebrating His Fellow Ghanaian Artists," Artnet, March 30 (Link)
Kraft, Coralie. "The T List: Five Things We Recommend This Week:," T Magazine, January 7 (Link)
"Kwesi Botchway," Gallery 1957, DG3 Leycol, London, UK (Catalog)
2020
Emelife, Aindrea. "Kwesi Botchway’s Defiant Figures Examine the Black Experience," Frieze, December 11 (Link)
Sporn, Stephanie. "For Ghanaian Portraitist Kwesi Botchway, Fashion and Power Go Hand in Hand," Galerie Magazine, November 13 (Link)
Brady, Anna and Margaret Carrigan. "Our pick of must-see gallery shows opening around the world in November," The Art Newspaper, November 2 (Link)
Edquist, Grace. "Ghanaian Artist Kwesi Botchway Revels in the Many Colors of Blackness in a New London Show," Vogue, October 27 (Link)

Awards, Fellowships, and Grants

2021
Dark Purple is Everything Black, Gallery 1957, Ghana
2020
Gallery 1957 Residency, Accra, Ghana (January - March)
2019
GUBA Awards USA Nominee — Influential Artist

Catalogues and Publications

2023
Botchway, Kwesi and Larry Ossei-Mensah. "Kwesi Botchway: There's More Than What The Eye Witnesses," Vielmetter Los Angeles, Of Wit Editorial, Small Graphic Projects (exhibition catalogue)
2022
Perrée, Rob and Shaquille Heath. "Rumors of Blackness," MARUANI MERCIER Gallery, Graphius, Brussels, Belgium (exhibition catalogue)

Public Collections

Arsenal Art Center, Canada
Belgium High Fashion Foundation, New York, NY
Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, NY
High Fashion Foundation, New York, NY
Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, FL
The Israel Museum, Tel Aviv, Israel
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, Canada
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne, Australia
Vanhaerents Art Foundation, Brussels, Belgium