Lot 79: BRIGHT BIMPONG (GHANAIAN, BORN 1960) ‘Adwoa’ bronze 58.5

BRIGHT BIMPONG (GHANAIAN, BORN 1960) ‘Adwoa’ bronze 58.5 x 38 x 30.5cm (23 1/16 x 14 15/16 x 12in). After graduating from the College of Art at the University of Science and Technology in Kumasi, Ghana, Bright Bimpong emigrated to the United States in 1989, in order to further his education in sculpture and casting techniques: “America was a unique experience that allowed me to escape the rigid restraints of academia that one experiences studying art in Africa.” Though America “offered freedom of expression,” the artist said his African upbringing gave him an appreciation for the different types and perceptions of beauty that are reflected in his work: “In America you find an artistic hub offering freedom of expression and the ability to interface with the world’s great artists, but in Africa, the place which inspired Picasso, you can develop a new perspective on reality, after having seen the harmony and simplicity in which life can be lived.” Bimpong recalled that “Many Americans are offended or shocked by some of my pieces, because of their physical appearance,” but he said he is “merely trying to counteract the popular notion that you must look a certain way to be beautiful.” Adwoa and Wofa I, sculptures of a heavy man and woman, draped in simple African clothing, are examples of how Bimpong combats the common perception that beauty is a term reserved only for the thin and what society deems acceptable. In the artist’s eyes, beauty takes multiple forms and can be found in every person. Bibliography J. Allen, ‘America and Art Through the Eyes of an African Artist: Ghanaian Bright Bimpong discusses African art in America’, Washington File, (Washington, D.C. 2003)