50 modern and contemporary African painters to know

Before the grid

Why talk about African paintings in the plural

From Nigerian modernism to popular Congolese scenes, from the Casablanca school to South African workshops, from artists from the diaspora to new figures of black portraiture, modern pictorial Africa is a network of homes. It is built in academies, streets, workshops, independence, migrations and biennials.

Some artists on this list paint on canvas; others move painting towards textiles, drawing, public space or installation. This is voluntary: in contemporary African art, the pictorial question often goes beyond the painting without losing color, gesture, surface and narration.

Method

How these 50 artists were chosen

The selection favors influence, international recognition, importance in a national or diasporic scene, visual singularity and the ability to open a reading door. The ranking does not claim to summarize the entire continent: it offers an entry map, balanced between West Africa, Central Africa, Southern Africa, North Africa, East Africa and diasporas.

Links are to Wikipedia.

Reading markers

Where to start?

For founding modernisms, start with Ben Enwonwu, Skunder Boghossian, Gerard Sekoto, Bruce Onobrakpeya, Mohamed Melehi, Inji Efflatoun or Mohammed Khadda. For popular and urban painting, Chéri Samba, Chérin, Malangatana, Viyé Diba or George Lilanga offer very direct entries.

For the contemporary world scene, Julie Mehretu, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Amoako Boafo, Michael Armitage, Ghada Amer, Lubaina Himid, Kader Attia and Abdoulaye Konaté show how African painting dialogues with the diaspora, colonial history, textiles, archive and abstraction.

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