Ghanaian artist and sculptor El Anatsui uses humble found materials — mostly famously, bottle caps — to make monumental artworks. Currently living and working in Nigeria, Anatsui is known for defying categorization, with sculptures that have been described variously as resembling quilts, animal hides, chainmail, lace and mosaics. He also creates smaller-scale abstract prints with a similar look and energy.
Anatsui was born in 1944 and earned his bachelor’s degree from Ghana’s Kumasi College of Arts, Science and Technology in 1968. He followed it up with a postgraduate diploma in art education and took his first teaching post at the University of Education in Ghana in 1969. In the late 1970s, Anatsui began creating his own art, mainly in terra-cotta, inspired by traditional African forms.
In 1982, Anatsui became a lecturer at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, where he continued to teach until 2011. Over the 1980s, he branched out and experimented with materials like wood, giving him greater freedom of scale, pattern and color. Over time, he began to use smaller pieces of metal stitched-together copper wire to build grandiose sculptures, which became his signature look and technique. In addition to bottle caps, Anatsui is known for using printing plates, iron nails, railroad ties and tin cans.
Whatever material he chooses for any given piece, Anatsui ensures that it has a connection to Africa, often sourcing from local recycling stations. His work is an exploration of the environment, waste, colonialism, local traditions, consumption and the connections between all of these facets. In the process, he transforms discarded items into beautiful art installations.
In 2008, Anatsui was recognized for his contributions to art with a Lifetime Achievement award at the Venice Biennale. His work has been exhibited all over the world, including at the Brooklyn Museum in New York City, the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, the National Museum of Ethnology in Osaka and Rice Gallery in Houston. In 2022, Damiani Publishers released a 360-page book titled El Anatsui: The Reinvention of Sculpture, which chronicles his life and work.
On 1stDibs, find El Anatsui prints and other art.
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Paper and Silver by El Anatsui hand-sculpted aluminium sculpture African Art
By El Anatsui
Located in Zug, CH
El Anatsui uses typically discarded resources such as liquor bottle caps, cassava graters and newspaper printing plates, to create both floor-based sculptures and shimmering wall pie...
Metal, Copper, Wire
Paper and Silver
By El Anatsui
Located in Toronto, Ontario
El Anatsui (b. 1944) is an acclaimed Ghanian sculptor working out of Nigeria. Known for his large-scale tapestry-like metallic sculptures created from discarded resources, Anatsui dr...
Copper, Wire
Price Upon Request
Variation I (B)
By El Anatsui
Located in Saint Louis, MO
El Anatsui Variation I (B), 2014 Pigment print with hand collage and copper wire 23 x 30.2 inches (58.4 x 76.8 cm) Edition of 16
Wire
$3,600
H 48 in W 48 in
Cloud Study II - large format photograph of dramatic mood cloudscape horizon sky
By Frank Schott
Located in San Francisco, CA
large-scale original art photography from a series of dramatic cloud atlas observations and abstract monochromatic skyscapes above the Mediterranean Sea C...
Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment, Archival Paper, Giclée, Black and ...
$2,200
H 30 in W 40 in
Back in 10 - large format photograph of conceptual message sign in landscape
By Frank Schott
Located in San Francisco, CA
From a series of whimsical conceptual motivational messages on classic Americana billboard signs in iconic landscapes of the American West BACK IN 10 by Frank Schott 30 x 40 inches...
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment, Giclée, Archival Ink
$1,800
H 40 in W 31 in
Persephone VI - large format photograph of a timeless environmental still
By Erik Pawassar
Located in San Francisco, CA
large scale original photograph from the body of works 'Persephone', a series of environmental still-life photographs of timeless palimpsest impressions Persephone VI by Erik Pawassar 40 x 31 inches (102 x 79cm) signed edition of 25 62 x 48 inches (157 x 122cm) signed edition of 7 archival fine art pigment print signed & numbered by artist on label custom/larger sizes are available on request ____________________________ Erik Pawassar's work focuses on the beauty of the disregarded or mundane object. The subjects for his striking and captivating visuals are typically set in the most ordinary environments, drawing the viewer into a charged but serene experience based on composition, palette and formal lines. Saturated in color, the nominal subjects gather a haunting and mesmerizing quality, creating a poignant pretext for the making of a formal color photograph. Decisively capturing the traces left by humanity, Pawassar's images are filled with a sense of universal nostalgia and pay homage to the passage of time and the extinguished moment, referencing documentary and street photographers like Henri Cartier-Bresson, Sebastian...
Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment, Archival Ink, Giclée, Archival Paper
$4,800
H 58 in W 58 in D 0.03 in
Seascape VII - large format photograph of cloud formations and reflecting sea
By Frank Schott
Located in San Francisco, CA
large scale original photograph of dramatic cloud formations and reflecting sea SEASCAPE VII by Frank Schott 58 x 58 inches ( 147 x 147cm ) signed edition of 7 48 x 48 inches ( 12...
Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment, Black and White, Giclée, Archival ...
$4,400
H 48 in Dm 72 in
H2O I Homage to David Hockney - abstact pattern pool surface water reflections
By Erik Pawassar
Located in San Francisco, CA
Light reflections of glistening sunlight on turquoise aquamarine water surface, large format photograph of sun reflecting on a summer pool, an homage to the iconic pool reflections p...
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Ink, Giclée, Archival Pigment
$3,600
H 48 in W 48 in
Seascape VII - large format photograph of cloud formations and reflecting sea
By Frank Schott
Located in San Francisco, CA
large scale original photograph of dramatic cloud formations and reflecting sea SEASCAPE VII by Frank Schott 48 x 48 inches ( 122 x 122cm ) signed edition of 7 58 x 58 inches ( 14...
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Inkjet, Archival Pigment, Black and ...
$5,800
H 48 in W 100 in
Hemisphere IV - large format photograph of abstract liquid cloudscapes in water
By Christian Stoll
Located in San Francisco, CA
large scale photography of mesmerizing color compositions of liquid cloudscape painting in water, hypnotizing abstract liquidscapes from the body o...
Giclée, Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment
$4,400
H 48 in W 64 in D 0.03 in
Seascape I - large format photograph of blue tone horizon and sea
By Frank Schott
Located in San Francisco, CA
large scale photograph capturing the soothing tones of nature's calming blue hour color palette Seascape I by Frank Schott 48 x 64 inches / 122cm x 162cm signed edition of 7 30 x 40 inches / 76cm x 102cm signed edition of 25 archival fine art pigment print signed & numbered by artist on certificate label ------------------------- Frank Schott grew up in Germany and attended the prestigious Academy of Arts in Cologne, studying under Professor Arno Jansen, who was an early influence. Moving to California in 1998, Schott's work has evolved to include the epic landscapes and deserts of the American West as well as architectural, conceptual and more formal environments from both home and his travels. Influenced by a number of photographic peers and precursors such as Candida Höfer, Andreas Gursky, Thomas Struth, Jeff Wall, Hiroshi Sugimoto, William Eggleston and Joel Sternfeld, Schott's images successfully blend technical, conceptual and formal rigor with a decisive sense of composition and color. Schott's images have an iconic sensibility and give us a bird's eye view onto humanity and its constructs. The specific is edged towards the abstract, often revealing the compelling and disjunctive moment where nature meets man. Frank Schott was born in Cologne, Germany in 1962. He currently lives and works in San Francisco. _________________________ Edition EKTAlux publishes an evolving curated selection of collectable large-scale photography in strictly limited editions, working closely with each artist to guarantee state-of-the-art museum level print and framing quality. Custom / larger print sizes available on request Images can be printed with white border ( 2in L prints / 4in XL prints )
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Archival Pigment, Archival Ink, Giclée
$5,200
H 72.5 in W 58 in D 0.3 in
Seascape V - large format photograph of monochromatic black white water surface
By Frank Schott
Located in San Francisco, CA
large scale photograph of mesmerizing monochromatic light reflections on water surface SEASCAPE V by Frank Schott 72.5 x 58 inches / 184cm x 147cm signe...
Archival Ink, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, Giclée, Archival Pigment
December 2020 C
By Gerhard Richter
Located in Bristol, GB
Diasec-mounted Giclée print on aluminium composite panel Edition 13 of 25 42 x 60 cm (16.5 x 23.6 in) Signed and numbered on the reverse Mint Published by Heni
Giclée
$5,000
H 39.38 in W 39.38 in
Empresses: Taytu Betul, Limited Edition by Damien Hirst (H10-5)
By Damien Hirst
Located in Hong Kong, HK
The Empresses: Taytu Betul (H10-5 ) Laminated Giclée print on aluminum composite, screen printed with glitter. Limited Edition: Edition Number 157/2814 Artwork dimensions: 100 x 100 ...
Giclée
$4,082
H 39.38 in W 39.38 in
H10-4 Suiko Giclée Print on Aluminium, Signed Contemporary Art
By Damien Hirst
Located in Bristol, GB
Laminated Giclée print on aluminium composite, screen printed with glitter Edition 151 of 3,310 39.3 x 39.3 in Signed on a label affixed to the back Mint. Minor imperfections may app...
Glitter, Giclée
Black and Silver
By El Anatsui
Located in Toronto, Ontario
El Anatsui (b. 1944) is an acclaimed Ghanian sculptor working out of Nigeria. Known for his large-scale tapestry-like metallic sculptures created from discarded resources, Anatsui dr...
Copper, Wire
Sold
H 64.18 in W 61.03 in D 1.97 in
Checked Key by El Anatsui, Limited Edition, Wall Sculpture, Metal, Contemporary
By El Anatsui
Located in Zug, CH
El Anatsui Checked Key 2022 Hand sculpted and formed UV cured acrylic resin inkjet on aluminum with irregular hand-cut edges and copper wire 163 × 155 × 5 cm (64.2 × 61 × 2 in) Signe...
Metal, Copper, Wire
Sold
H 64.18 in W 61.03 in D 1.97 in
Checked Key by El Anatsui, Limited Edition, Wall Sculpture, Metal, Contemporary
By El Anatsui
Located in Zug, CH
El Anatsui Checked Key 2022 Hand sculpted and formed UV cured acrylic resin inkjet on aluminum with irregular hand-cut edges and copper wire 163 × 155 × 5 cm (64.2 × 61 × 2 in) Signe...
Metal, Copper, Wire
Striped Flags
By El Anatsui
Located in New York, NY
This work is offered by CLAMP in New York City.
Metal