A leading artist of our time, El Anatsui transforms everyday materials into sculptures of astonishing complexity and visual impact.

His art contains an entire material sociology of daily life, consumption and commerce that reflects the flux and flow of postcolonial capital, embracing the wisdom of local cultures and societies where things are constantly adapted and reused.

Resisting the rules of art history, El Anatsui’s guiding concept of the “unfixed form” means that sculpture, like life itself, is dynamic and remains fluid and adaptive according to place and circumstance.

In 2015 El Anatsui was awarded La Biennale di Venezia’s Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement, followed by the Praemium Imperiale for Sculpture in 2017. In 2023, he was recognised in “Time100 Most Influential People”.