Ange Arthur Koua

Through stories of perseverance, struggle, and hope, Ange Arthur captures the determination of people striving for a better life despite hardship and disillusionment. A storyteller of intimate narratives, he sheds light on the defining challenges of our contemporary world.

Koua examines North–South relations through interconnected themes such as the movement of people and goods, the search for identity in a world that is both progressive and deeply unequal, the preservation and erosion of cultural values, and a form of capitalism that generates as much waste as desire. His work also reflects on consumerism and its impact on individuals, widening social inequalities, and humanity’s remarkable resilience in the face of adversity.

Born in 1989 in Côte d’Ivoire and trained in painting at the Abidjan School of Fine Arts, Ange Arthur Koua quickly moved away from this medium, which he found too limiting. He became interested in textiles, particularly denim, which he cuts, glues, sews, bleaches, and paints to create tapestries, installations, sculptures, and works on paper.

His use of this material for his characters is no accident: denim is the universal textile of globalization. The use of disparate pieces of collected fabric symbolizes the fragmentation of these people’s destinies. Ange Arthur Koua’s ethnic background influences his work: the Akan people (of eastern Ivory Coast) strongly believe in the existence of the soul (wawô) and its immortal nature, which remains in a garment that has been worn. Thus, the history and lived experiences of these people are imbued in his works. Ange Arthur’s work focuses on the human condition.

He explores the relationships humans have with their environment and fellow humans, as well as life experiences.

He examines North–South relations through interconnected themes such as the movement of people and goods, the search for identity in a world that is both progressive and deeply unequal, the preservation and erosion of cultural values, and a form of capitalism that generates as much waste as desire. His work also reflects on consumerism and its impact on individuals, widening social inequalities, and humanity’s remarkable resilience in the face of adversity.

Through stories of perseverance, struggle, and hope, Ange Arthur captures the determination of people striving for a better life despite hardship and disillusionment. A storyteller of intimate narratives, he sheds light on the defining challenges of our contemporary world.

Ange Arthur Koua Ivorian, b. 1989

Through stories of perseverance, struggle, and hope, Ange Arthur captures the determination of people striving for a better life despite hardship and disillusionment. A storyteller of intimate narratives, he sheds light on the defining challenges of our contemporary world.

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