Dominique Zinkpé | Loewe Foundation Craft Prize 2023

We’re happy to announce that Dominique Zinkpè has been selected as one of the finalists of the prestigious Loewe Foundation Craft Prize 2023.

For the occasion, Zinkpè created a sculptural that features intricately detailed wooden statuettes, each crafted into myriads of individual pieces carved from the wood of an old canoe, in celebration of the Ìbejì cult of twin hood, essential to the West African spiritual pantheon.

Drawing on the Yoruba belief that twins hold special significance and powers, each figurine recalls the tradition of families creating an Ibéji doll, in the occurrence of the departure of one of the twins. The statuette symbolises in essence the soul of the deceased in physical form so it can continue to be cared for on earth.

Each statuette has been finely carved with individual details, then hand-painted with washes of pink and orange, a subtle yet profound reminder of the uniqueness of every individual.

Zinkpè, unarguably one of the preeminent African artists working today, is all together a pioneer, an iconoclast and a visionary. His oeuvre, anchored at the core of the 21st century cultural zeitgeist, is the stellar epitome of a contemporary African creation that alleviates borders and elevates our inherent humanity.