Artist
El Anatsui
2014–15 Artist in Residence
El Anatsui (born 1944, Anyako, Ghana; active Nsukka, Nigeria, and Tema, Ghana) has achieved international acclaim for his distinctive three-dimensional sculptures that repurpose ordinary bottle caps, all from alcoholic beverage containers that he collects from junk depots. From these banal metal tops, which are implicated in a history of exchange with Europe dating back to the colonial period, Anatsui is able to extract visual effects of exquisite beauty, fashioning abstract designs that deftly choreograph color, shape, reflection, and opacity.
Anatsui received his BA from the College of Art, University of Science and Technology in Kumasi, Ghana, in 1969. Since 1975 he has taught at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
