With him, no garish colors, no flashy characters, no spectacular scenes. Sanda Amadou builds in her paintings a surprising void in the middle of a particular “forest”. The 44-year-old Beninese plastic artist, self-taught, creates a trinity between art, the sacred and the protection of the environment. He is one of 130 artists currently exhibited by 38 international galleries at AKAA, the main French fair for artists from Africa and its diasporas.
RFI : You were first a teacher and a writer, with a doctorate in sociolinguistics. How did you come to contemporary art ?
Sanda Amadou : At first, I didn’t really choose to be a visual artist. Initially, I wanted to do poetry and write short stories. But, I had trouble finding a publishing house to publish my poems. So, I turned to my Fulani nomadic culture. I started collecting Fulani tattoos which I drew on papers to explain and interpret them. Then I switched to the plastic arts.
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Fulani culture exists in many countries. You were born in Benin, you studied in Ghana and Nigeria before returning to Benin in 2019. This personal journey between several countries and between several cultures, how has it influenced your artistic approach? ?
I don’t think there are several cultures that are reflected in my work, it’s more of a single culture, the Fulani culture, even if it’s complicated to talk about “the Fulani culture”. Fulani people are found in almost every country in Africa, but there are commonalities that characterize Fulani culture. Those who know the Fulani culture will recognize elements of this culture in my paintings, for example the Fulani stick, a key element of our culture, because it helps guide the herd in the bush.
What prompted you to leave Benin ?
Benin is a small country. There were no art schools. So, I ended up in Nigeria. This allowed me to meet several other artists and improve my working technique, with art schools in Lagos. It was a great opening in the field of plastic arts. But in Nigeria it wasn’t easy either, because I’m Fulani and there are always conflicts between peasants and nomadic herders. It also had an impact on my work. I work extensively on Fulani nomads. As a result, when I do exhibitions, very often, it’s a bit frowned upon by some people. For them, they are criminals, bandits, etc. I even went to jail for it in Lagos. It’s really not easy, but I keep working…
One of your series exhibited at AKAA by the Dutch gallery OpenArtExchange is entitled Forbidden Zone. What sort of “forbidden zone” are you talking about? ?
When we take the case of Benin, there are often sacred forests. And there is inevitably a space which is not occupied, it is the “prohibited zone”, a ritual space dedicated to the divinity. It is like a monastery or a convent. I don’t really like using the word “voodoo”. I call this space the “forbidden zone”, but it is simply reserved for the initiated, for the followers of a culture. Of course, there is a deity. Those who know about it know the sacrifices that have to be made. And only they have access to this space. Of course, this deity has rules that should not be broken. That is to say, all those who go to the forest are required to respect the rules imposed by this deity. At the same time, it helps preserve forests and nature. These works do not speak of this divinity, but show how one can go through the sacred to preserve the environment.
These tables are rigorously structured : on the edges, a very orderly, very flat painting; inside the room appears a sculptural, visual part, symbolizing a kind of forest; and at the heart of the work dominates an empty space. Tell us about this structure and the materials and colors that go with it.
I don’t really like bright colors. I like colors that are a little dull, for example ocher yellow, grey, black and also “dirty white”. The material that is there is made up of braids, very popular in Benin and Africa. It is made from synthetic wicks. I take these strands, I’m going to color them with acrylic, and then I stick them on the board. In the middle, I leave a space reserved for the deities. The idea came to me in Benin. I saw braided women, and I said to myself to take the braids, but not to speak about the braids, but to divert them in order to represent forests.
All of your works exhibited at the AKAA carry meaningful titles (Restricted zone, guardian of spirits, Back to source, fulfillment) and were created in 2022. Was there an urgency to produce and show these works ?
The urgency is there: the planet. We all know that. We do not have the choice. We must, at all costs, do everything to preserve it, fight against pollution… The urgency is there. In Benin, as in many countries in Africa, we feel that there is a climate change. The dry season lasts longer. The rainy season comes later, the heat rises.
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Even in Europe, we already see that there are no more seasons. We are in October, normally it should be cold here in Paris, but it is hot. It is time to become aware, to change our habits. We can say everything, but awareness does not work 100%. If it were possible to sanctify all of the world’s forests, that could be a game-changer. It could allow people to respect nature. For this, I made this series The sacred places. As soon as you are told that it is a sacred forest, you automatically change your attitude and you respect the rules that must not be broken. I admit, in Western culture, it is difficult to believe in deities, but in African countries, it works.
You point out that the ancestors knew how to live with nature. How do you communicate with nature ?
When I am in Benin, for example, when I go to my mother’s farm, when I need a stick or a plant to heal myself, I will not go directly with my knife to cut. You’ll have to ask permission first. When you need a leaf or anything from this plant, no matter how small, you must first make a request, orally, before you collect the leaves from this plant or the bark from a tree. And you just take what you need. If you have to uproot the whole plant, you will have to plant another plant or see what to do so that there is not too much damage. It is as if you are addressing a human being. For instance : ” I don’t feel comfortable, I’m a little sick, I would like to have a part of you, I need it to heal me. You communicate as if you were asking someone for a favor. If you don’t, it’s like a lack of consideration.
► The works of Sanda Amadou are exhibited by the OpenArtExchange gallery in AKAAfrom October 21 to 23 in Paris, Carreau du Temple.