Paul Ahyi (January 15, 1930 – January 4, 2010) was a

Togolese Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

artist, sculptor, architect, painter, interior designer and author. Ahyi is credited with designing of the

flag of Togo The flag of Togo (french: drapeau du Togo) is the national flag, ensign, and naval jack of Togo. It has five equal horizontal bands of green (top and bottom) alternating with yellow. There is a white five-pointed star on a red square in the up ...

. Ahyi was known for his massive outdoor artworks,

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 and sculptures, including his contributions to the Independence Monument in

Lomé Lomé is the capital and largest city of Togo. It has an urban population of 837,437

, which commemorates the country's independence from France. Other outdoor sculptures and statues by Ahyi can be found on buildings and in parks throughout Togo, as well as the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...

Côte d’Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. He also created his pieces using a wide array of mediums including jewelry,

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

and

tapestries Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads may ...

. He was also an interior designer who created household objects and art pieces.

Biography

Paul Ahyi was born to

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

lese parents on January 15, 1930, 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 ...

French Dahomey French Dahomey was a French colony and part of French West Africa from 1894 to 1958. After World War II, by the establishment of the French Fourth Republic in 1947, Dahomey became part of the French Union with an increased autonomy. On 4 October ...

. Ahyi attended school in

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...

, from 1949 until 1952. He moved to France, where he enrolled in the Fine Art School of

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...

beginning in 1952. He graduated from the

École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts The Beaux-Arts de Paris is a French '' grande école'' whose primary mission is to provide high-level arts education and training. This is classical and historical School of Fine Arts in France. The art school, which is part of the Paris Scien ...

in Paris in 1959 and returned to Togo, which was called

French Togoland French Togoland (French: '' Togo français'') was a French colonial empires, French colonial League of Nations mandate from 1916 to 1960 in French West Africa. In 1960 it became the independent Togolese Republic, and the present day nation of T ...

prior to independence. Ahyi was commissioned to design the

flag A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design empl ...

of the new nation of Togo, which achieved independence from France on April 27, 1960. His finished design, which was unveiled in 1960, is still used by the country. Ahyi used the

Pan-African colours Pan-African colours is a term that may refer to two different sets of colours: * Green, yellow and red, the colours of the flag of Ethiopia, have come to represent the pan-Africanist ideology due to the country's history of having avoided being ...

of red, yellow and green in his flag, which was modeled from the

flag of Liberia The flag of Liberia or the Liberian flag, sometimes called the Lone Star, bears a close resemblance to the flag of the United States, representing Liberia's founding by former black slaves from the United States and the Caribbean. They are both ...

using horizontal stripes. The red square symbolized blood shed in the struggle for independence. The flag's yellow represented the

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ...

, while green symbolizes Togo's

forests A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

and agriculture. Ahyi added a white star, similar to the Liberian flag, representing light,

intelligence Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. More generally, it can ...

and

peace Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

. He also contributed to another important Togolese

national symbol A national symbol is a symbol of any entity considering and manifesting itself to the world as a national community: the sovereign states but also nations and countries in a state of colonial or other dependence, federal integration, or even an e ...

, the Independence Monument which was constructed in the center of Lomé. Ahyi's reliefs and sculptures have been installed and displayed at the United Nations in New York City, as well as Canada,

, West Africa, Italy, Japan, and Paris, France. He taught art and architecture throughout Africa during his career. He authored several books, many focusing on the arts and his native

, including "''Togo, mon cœur saigne''" and "''La réflexion sur l’art et la culture''".

Awards

Ahyi received numerous awards, honors and recognitions through his career. In 1961, he was bestowed the Médaille d’Or des Métiers d’Arts in Paris. Ahyi was made an Officer of the Ordre du Mono in Togo in 1970. He was inducted as a Commander of the

Ordre des Palmes Académiques A suite, in Western classical music and jazz, is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral/ concert band pieces. It originated in the late 14th century as a pairing of dance tunes and grew in scope to comprise up to five dances, sometimes w ...

in 1985 and an Officer of the

Ordre des Arts et des Lettres The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...

, also in 1985. Ahyi was designated a

UNESCO Artist for Peace UNESCO Artists for Peace are international celebrity advocates for the United Nations agency UNESCO. This category of advocate is intended to heighten public awareness in addition to the categories UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador UNESCO Goodwill Amba ...

in a ceremony held in Paris on September 10, 2009. Former UNESCO Director-General

Koichiro Matsuura Kōichirō, Koichiro, Kouichirou or Kohichiroh is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible Writings *晃一郎, "clear, one, son" *光一郎, "light, one, son" *弘一郎, "vast, one, son" *鴻一郎, "prosperous, one, son" *紘一郎, "large, on ...

honored Ahyi for his "contribution to the promotion of UNESCO's ideals through his artistic activities."

Death

Paul Ahyi died on Monday, January 4, 2010, in Lomé, at the age of 79.Décès de Paul Ahyi, le Picasso africain
(French) ''Le Telegramme''

Irina Bokova Irina Georgieva Bokova ( bg, Ирина Георгиева Бокова; born 12 July 1952) is a Bulgarian politician and the former Director-General of UNESCO (2009–2017). During her political and diplomatic career in Bulgaria, she served, a ...

, the director-general of UNESCO, called Ahyi's death, "a great loss for Togo and Africa and also for UNESCO, which had appointed him as one of its advocates for peace and social cohesion."

References

External links

Paul Ahyi official site
(French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ahyi, Paul 1930 births 2010 deaths Togolese artists Togolese sculptors Togolese architects Togolese painters Togolese writers Flag designers Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Commandeurs of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques People from Abomey École des Beaux-Arts alumni Togolese expatriates in France 20th-century Togolese writers 21st-century Togolese writers