By: Mariana Fernandez
ACCRA, Ghana–Serge Attukwei Clottey’s small studio on Labadi Beach is filled to the brim with yellow jerrycans. Unlike the rest of the country however, Clottey doesn’t use the containers to store and transport water. He cuts them up into tiny squares, perforates them, and transforms them into the large-scale installations and masks that have become signature of his work.
The Ghanaian-born artist was originally drawn to the jerrycans because of their availability throughout the country. Originally imported to Africa from the West as cooking oil, the gallons are repurposed by the people of Ghana to store and transport water due to scarcity. Clottey, in a way, furthers the migration of the ubiquitous water gallons by repurposing them once again – this time into art – and sending them back to the West. Coined ‘Afrogallonism’ by the artist himself, the idea is to “explore the trading relationships behind that object,” Clottey says. “For me, ‘afro’ is a very colonial word that I wanted to attach to the object before it was sent to the West for exhibition.”
Serge Clottey’s refusal to adhere to traditional notions of art generated a lot of backlash within his community on Labadi Beach and throughout Accra. “When I started, my art was criticized a lot by the elders,” Clottey recalls. “I had to be careful where to perform and where not to perform.” But during the last election season, when he and his performance collective dragged each other with a noose through the streets of Accra to protest political corruption, people began to see the power of addressing political and social issues through art. For an entire week, Clottey’s performance was broadcast on national television.
But even after having gained the attention of galleries in Berlin, New York, Los Angeles, and Beijing, the 31-year-old always makes a point to showcase his art in his hometown before it goes abroad. “The community is a huge part of my process,” Clottey says. “I can’t separate it from my work.”
