Adrien, 2021

Serge Attukwei Clottey (born 1985 in Accra, Ghana, lives and works in Accra) works across installation, performance, photography, and sculpture. Clottey primarily engages with found materials sourced from his hometown, creating a dialogue with Ghana’s cultural heritage and identity.  Utilizing commonplace objects such as discarded Kufuor gallons, duct tape and cork, Clottey explores personal and political narratives deeply rooted in the histories of trade and migration. The yellow Kufuor gallons, originally used as cooking oil containers and later repurposed for water or fuel storage, embody a conscious effort to transform and recycle plastic waste into art. This practice, a central tenet in Clottey’s body of work, is an ideology he refers to as ‘Afrogallonism’. This economic use of materials also permeates Clottey’s mixed media paintings, where he incorporates cork and duct tape into a series of portraits. The choice of cork, a material that evolves in appearance under prolonged exposure to sunlight, symbolically mimics the texture of skin. Reflecting his connection to the cultural and historical fabric of Accra, Clottey notes that cork is commonly used in local churches and throughout the city to disseminate information. Duct tape, historically associated with oppression and violence, takes on a redemptive role in Clottey’s hands. He presents it not as a symbol of constraint, but as a protective and fortifying material. Through meticulous cuts and joins, Clottey transforms duct tape into a medium that speaks to resilience and strength. In every facet of his work, Serge Attukwei Clottey invites viewers to contemplate the intersections of materiality, history, and culture, offering a nuanced perspective on the transformative power of art in the context of societal narratives.