Gideon Appah on 'Beneath Night and Day' Art Exhibition in Ghana

Inspiration from Ghanaian Life

• 🎨 Gideon Appah's first solo show at Pace Gallery, titled "Beneath Night and Day," features works created over the past year in his studio in Ghana.
• 🏖️ Many paintings are inspired by visits to Bousua Beach, a six-hour drive from Accra, capturing the lifestyle of fishermen and the freedom and relaxation of beach culture.
• 🌊 Appah was particularly struck by his first close encounter with the sea and the nightlife at the beach, including bonfire nights.

Artistic Process and Storytelling

• 🖼️ The exhibition includes large-scale works, some filling an entire wall, depicting scenes like fishermen, performers, and beach life.
• 🎬 Appah created a film, "Beyond the Shadows," which is also part of the exhibition, aiming to document scenes and tell the story of the paintings through moving images.
• 🤝 The relationship between the film and paintings is symbiotic, with each influencing the other's creation and narrative.

Key Artworks and Themes

• 🏄 "Brothers and Boats" features surfers resting with their surfboards, with boats in the background, drawing inspiration from both memory and photographs of people.
• 🎯 "Target Practice" depicts a playful, contemporary activity of locals shooting arrows at targets, which Appah saw as a unique cultural element to capture.
• 🐢 "Night Catch" prominently features a fisherman rescuing a turtle, a scene inspired by a real event Appah witnessed, highlighting storytelling through painting.

Cultural Representation and Artistic Choices

• 🎭 "Young Masquerade" showcases a Ghanaian drummer in full festival attire, representing a tradition from the Takrai and Winniba regions, with a toned-down red background to make the figure pop.
• 🗣️ The exhibition includes a voiceover poem by Ghanaian poet Pra Asanto for the film "Beyond the Shadows," adding a layer of artistic depth and personal expression.
• 🌌 The title "Beneath Night and Day" reflects the atmospheric ambiguity in the paintings, where it's difficult to discern the exact time of day due to the use of various darks, dawns, mornings, and afternoons, with backgrounds in turquoise, gray, or bright blue.

Exhibition Significance

• 🌟 This exhibition marks Appah's first solo show at Pace Gallery in New York, signifying a significant milestone in his career and a journey with the gallery.
• 📍 The show is on display at Pace Gallery, 510 West 25th Street, through February 26th.