Serge Attukwei Clottey. Beyond the Skin

Serge Attukwei Clottey (Ghana, 1985) will be invited to cover the façade of the early Modernista building of the Fundació Antoni Tàpies (designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner) with a second skin, composed of tesserae made from waste material. To this end, the artist, through the use of yellow containers (initially used as cooking oil cans and later recycled to collect water), car tires and cork, will compose fragmented canvases revealing his concern for the culture and identity of the city where he was born and lives, and from which he draws the raw material for his creations.

His installation will invite people to reflect on environmentalism and the prevailing worldwide economic system in the form of a public programme articulated through dialogue and collaboration with migrant communities residing in Barcelona. Some of the city’s historical debts will also be addressed, such as the recognition that part of its historical wealth was accrued through the slave trade.

Serge Attukwei Clottey, Time and Chance, 2023. Instalación en el Gaggiandre, Arsenale. © Fotografía: Andrea Avezzù. Cortesía de la Biennale di Venezia.