Gideon appah — ‘SOUTH FACING SOUTH (GHANAMAN X QUISQUEYA)’ — LONDON JANUARY 2021

Gallery 1957 is pleased to present a presentation of Ghanaian artist, Gideon Appah (b. 1987) on view January 2021 in our London Gallery. In this new body of work, Appah expands on his mystical landscapes and dreamlike narratives in large-scale oil paintings.

A mixed-media artist, Gideon Appah draws from personal experiences to create works seeped in memory, informed greatly by early life experiences in Ghana’s capital, Accra. Growing up in a large family, his works are often reflective of a life characterized by strong emotional bonds, religious activities and folklore.

In new other-worldly works, Appah depicts surreal scenes of unknown figures populating natural landscapes. Introducing jewel-like greens alongside washes of peach and pops of colour, his works reveal barely clothed figures against scenes miraged with tropes from legend and myth.

Through nostalgic blues and verdigris, his worlds are abstracted and fragmented, with glimpses of nature and ghostly reflections barely visible. Through these ethereal works, Appah focuses on presence or feelings evoked, in turn alluding to the organic transformations of memories over time. Using thick, rough application of acrylic to build up his compositions, his works respond directly to his own familial stories, whilst also reflecting on a country’s national history.

  • Sons
    Gideon Appah
    Sons, 2020
    Acrylics on canvas
    (Diptych in progress)
    240 x 300 cm
  • Strangers on a white horse
    Gideon Appah
    Strangers on a white horse, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    240 x 300 cm
    94 1/2 x 118 1/8 in
  • Blue River
    Gideon Appah
    Blue River, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    240 x 300 cm
    94 1/2 x 118 1/8 in
  • Night watcher
    Gideon Appah
    Night watcher, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    244 x 183 cm
    96 1/8 x 72 1/8 in
  • Rex 2
    Gideon Appah
    Rex 2, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    183 x 244 cms
  • Stranger
    Gideon Appah
    Stranger, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    120 x 100 cm
    47 1/4 x 39 3/8 in
  • Disco
    Gideon Appah
    Disco, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    200 x 200 cms
  • Group of men
    Gideon Appah
    Group of men, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    130 x 130 cms
  • Two men on an empty street
    Gideon Appah
    Two men on an empty street, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    177 x 127 cms
  • Nonchalance
    Gideon Appah
    Nonchalance, 2020
    Oil and acrylic on canvas
    200 x 150 cms
  • Pale Men
    Gideon Appah
    Pale Men, 2020
    Acrylics on canvas
    244 x 183 cm