Mr. Prince Temneg, one of the Ghana's renowned artists, has called on the government to aid Ghanaian artists so they can promote African art on the international market.
He said, "the time has come for artists, gallery owners, connoisseurs and the art loving and buying public to come to terms with the modern art and move away especially from the market scene, beach scene, woman carrying water, pot etc., which make African Art stuffy and boring."
He said the government should take up the responsibility of exposing artists and giving them the opportunity to exhibit their works in other countries, to enable them interact with other artists from diverse background to learn from them as well. He also pleaded with the government to subsidise art materials, which he said are very expensive.
Prince Temeng, was speaking at his solo art exhibition under theme "Spirit of Colour" at the Alliance Fraincaise in Accra. The exhibition, which started last Wednesday, will end on February 22, 2002.
The exhibition, the 8th solo exhibition by Prince Temeng in Africa and the world, consists of paintings and collage, and is being organised by the French Embassy and the Alliance Francaise.
Prince Temeng holds a degree in Art from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), and has taught in numerous craft and art schools in Africa. He noted that Africa's art industry has a lot of potential, which has not been tapped. Even though African art and craft are making an impact on the African market, it has a lot to offer to the world, he added.
"Africa should stretch its imagination beyond mere pictorial presentation," he said. and called for more art education, saying, "art is the pivot around which all sciences revolve thus playing a crucial role in our society."
He suggested that if Ghana's art can make impact on the international market, there is the need for the government to have a separate Ministry responsible for the arts.
The "Spirit of Colour", he said, is about life's situation in a complex but visually satisfying manner that come in the abstract, the semi-abstract and the realistic.
Opening the exhibition, Ms. Anna Bossman, President of Alliance Francaise, congratulated the artist for his good work especially in other African countries, USA and Britain to promote the artistic image of Ghana. She said Prince Temeng's 8th exhibition is the right step towards drawing the attention of the public to craft and artisan works.
