Grace Salome Kwami began her art education in 1951 at the School of Art and Craft in Achimota after several years of teaching in secondary schools. Girl in Red portrays Gladys Ankora, a woman who worked for Kwami’s sister. Ankora fills the space of the canvas, suggesting physical proximity between the artist and the woman, who has dressed and suspended her activities to be painted. Ankora is likely to have carefully chosen her outfit– a 1950s custom-made red dress with a wide-set boat neckline typical of the modernist era. At a time when cloth was central to incorporating people into the state, Kwami not only pays attention to the fabric and folds, but also to her sitter’s solemn expression and features, carefully drawing the viewer’s attention to the small diamond-shaped earring she has chosen to wear, in addition to an intentionally understated necklace.
This is the first time the work of Grace Salome Kwami is presented at Biennale Arte.
—Nancy Dantas
