Juxtapose; Who Be Me

Who are we? Why? How did we come to be? Questions probing matters of family, art and the idea of connection and disconnection, Kofi Setordji uses his art as a method to communicate his uncertainties. Believing art is the highest form of all human endeavour, Setordji hopes to use art as a reflection to create changes in the society he lives in – often feeling a disconnection in the world he lives in.

Setordji creates a series of five clay heads, emphasising this feeling of detachment. The form of an unplugged, disconnected mind is articulated through these sculptural pieces. “I am interested in the way man innovates to live in a place from history to what we see and experience today. So, I paint subjects based on love, marriage, death, thinking and innovation”. A multi-faceted artist, Setordji transforms himself, his mind changing as the creative process fluctuates, drawing inspiration from his immediate surroundings.

Creating a series of living environments, radically integrated alongside Setordji’s work, Nada Moukarzel, founder of La Maison in Accra, Ghana and curator of ‘who be me’, selected furniture pieces which blur the line between art and design, Moukarzel aims to engage the audience to deliberate a series of questions, eliminating the traditional, sterile white cube atmosphere and instead, acting as a place of refuge – one which could represent the sense of a home. La Maison is not your standard exhibition space instead intended to act as a creative catalyst to inspire people’s creative processes when curating their homes.

Nada Moukarzel,

A home is seen as an extension of one’s personality. When you display your choice of colour, materiality and shapes, you are presenting a reflection of your inner self. Moukarzel drew inspiration from Setordji’s vibrant colours and themes of connection and disconnection. “I find that people are disconnected from themselves and the society they live in and that disconnection leads them to make the wrong choices. An idea that always struck me is how people base most of their choices, rather than feeling”.

Kofi Setordji Obsolete 60 x 30 x 30 cm Terracotta, plastic