DELA ANYAH
Dela Anyah's works combine Ghanaian popular culture, historical media sources, and personal observations of vulcanisers in his home country of Ghana.
MessageDela Anyah’s multifaceted practice examines the history and decomposition of discarded objects within local vulcaniser shops, exploring rebirth and identity in a body of work that includes sculpture, installations, photography, painting and film.
Oscillating between memory and fiction, he weaves together multiple narratives that are based on Ghanaian popular culture, current and historical media accounts, and his own ongoing observations and encounters with vulcanisers in his native Ghana. The visual iconography of vulcaniser shops and scrap yards—stacks of worn tyres and inner tubes, mounds of vehicle wreckage, and scrawled signage on the bodies of damaged cars—forms the core of his practise. In the middle of what appears to be chaos, Dela muses about concepts of value in relation to our existence as humans.
Anyah was an artist in residence at the Noldor Residency in 2022. The next year, he came in as Second Runner Up for the Kuenyehia Prize. His work belongs in the collections of Sir David Adjaye (New York, London, Accra), the Institute Museum of Ghana and the Isshaq Foundation in Accra, Ghana.
Selected solo exhibitions include: Nubuke Foundation, Accra (2023), The Noldor Residency, Accra (2022)
Selected group exhibitions include: Institute Museum of Ghana, Accra (2023), Mitchell-Innes & Nash, New York (2023), Galleri Christoffer Egelund, Copenhagen (2023), Latitudes Online (2023), Museum of Science and Technology, Accra (2023)
Statement
My artistic exploration centers around vulcanizer and mechanic spaces, particularly the discarded objects within them, unraveling their histories and potential futures. This fascination is deeply rooted in concepts of renewal, self-discovery, identity, rebirth, and transformative change—themes that echo throughout my personal life and creative odyssey.
Through the utilization of found objects like tires, inner tubes, license plates, bicycle rims, and more, I craft new forms that serve as visual manifestations of my core themes: identity and rebirth. Each piece becomes a narrative, weaving together the stories of forgotten materials into a tapestry of significance.
Ultimately, my artwork strives to breathe life into the seemingly mundane, infusing vitality into objects that may appear lifeless or resigned. It is an exploration of finding value in the overlooked, celebrating the potential for renewal in what might seem dead or hopeless at first glance.