Koffi Gahou (22 October 1947 – 24 August 2019) was a Beninese artist, actor, and director.

Biography

Gahou was born in Cotonou on October 22, 1947. He studied from 1986 to 1989 at the Institute of Theatrical Studies at the

University of Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris 3 The New Sorbonne University (french: Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle, also known as Paris III) is a public university in Paris, France. It is one of the inheritors of the historic University of Paris, which was completely overhauled and rest ...

, earning a teaching license. From 1985 to 1986 Gahou served an internship at the

Conservatoire national supérieur d'art dramatique A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger in ...

in Paris and in 1988, had an internship at the Institut international de la marionnette. Beginning in 1974, he was self-educated in the mediums of plastic art, wall tapestry, sculpture, and interior architecture. Gahou joined the civil service as an artist and performed in the "Cerveaux noirs" troupe. Also a founder of the "Zama Hara" theater group, he had several exhibitions of his work in Africa, Europe, Cuba, and the United States. Gahou created the cloth work "Yovo Helou e, Akowe helou e" in 1990. It depicts slaves with their hands tied behind their backs, and was a great success. In 2000, Gahou played the stepbrother of Boubacar, a farmer, in Jean Odoutan's film '' Barbecue Pejo''. In a video statement in April 2019, Gahou demanded to be paid the 30 million CFA Francs that a Beninese MP was ordered to give him by the 3rd Commercial Chamber of the Cotonou Court. The matter stemmed from a 2007 contest that Gahou won but did not receive the prize money. Gahou died on 24 August 2019 in

Abomey Abomey is the capital of the Zou Department of Benin. The commune of Abomey covers an area of 142 square kilometres and, as of 2012, had a population of 90,195 people. Abomey houses the Royal Palaces of Abomey, a collection of small traditional ...

. His funeral was held on 25 September.

References

External links

Koffi Gahou
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gahou, Koffi 1947 births 2019 deaths Beninese film directors Beninese artists People from Cotonou