Biography

Cyprien Tokoudagba (1939 - 5 May 2012) was a sculptor from Abomey, Benin. He started to work as a restorer for the Abomey Museum in 1987, when he was hired to replicate the original

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

s that told many of Dahomey's legends and stories while celebrating the individual kings for the new King Glelé royal palace façade, among the Royal Palaces of Abomey reconstructed by the government of Benin. Tokoudagba continued the tradition of bas-relief though the use of cement and commercially available synthetic paint, while also producing works on canvas, frescoes and monumental sculptures. In 1989, Cyprien left Benin for the first time to exhibit at “Magiciens de la Terre” in Paris, France. Tokoudagba's work was exhibited at the "Ouidah '92" festival, which celebrated

Vodun art Vodun art is associated with the West African Vodun religion of Nigeria, Benin, Togo and Ghana. The term is sometimes used more generally for art associated with related religions of West and Central Africa and of the African diaspora in Brazil, ...

from Benin and the African Diaspora in Ouidah, Benin in February 1993. His works have also been exhibited in the following museums: Smithsonian institution - National Museum of African Art, Washington, DC; Musée Dapper, Paris, France;

Museum Kunst Palast The Kunstpalast, formerly Kunstmuseum Düsseldorf is an art museum in Düsseldorf. History The roots of the museum go back around 300 years. In 1932, the collection of the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf (Academy of Art) was housed in the Kunstm ...

, Düsseldorf, Germany; Hayward Gallery, London, Englands; Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France; Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, Japan; São Paulo Biennale, Brasil.

References

1939 births 2012 deaths Male sculptors People from Abomey 20th-century Beninese sculptors 21st-century sculptors Voodoo artists 20th-century male artists 21st-century male artists {{Benin-bio-stub