Joshua Oheneba-Takyi Ghanaian, b. 1997

Overview

Lady in Red in Chair, 2021. Acrylic on canvas

FORTH INTERPLAY, 2022. Oil on canvas

Oheneba-Takyi’s large-scale acrylic canvases reveal their visual poetry through his poignantly rendered figures, depicted in a variety of poses, all interacting with chairs of various styles and colors. The overarching idea that runs through these works is the universality of the chair as a functional man-made object that people all over the world use. We all take a seat at the table and yet the chairs we use are different and are conditioned by their unique past and present. It is through the chair that Oheneba-Takyi endows his paintings with emotion and character—their static nature, when juxtaposed with the fluidity of the human form, accentuates the latter and allows the viewer to fully embrace each individual’s unique character.

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Biography

Born in Kumasi in 1997, Joshua Oheneba Takyi gravitated to drawing and painting from a very young age. He has sketched since he could remember, “Drawing became a coping mechanism for me,” he recalls. He would sketch cartoons and illustrations for story books. While he was on a science-focused track at school, he always continued to make art on the side.

After attending Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology where he studied building technology, Oheneba-Takyi dedicated himself entirely to his art, painting on his own and with friends. He learned the practice of mixing paints and painting on canvas on his own and through his contemporaries. In 2018, he started Paintspree with a friend and colleague. The non-profit organisation turns any space into an art-friendly environment where participants can relax and paint for fun as a way to invest in their creative selves.

Joshua Oheneba-Takyi lives and works in Accra, Ghana.

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