Den senegalesiske billedhugger Ousmane Sow er – som den første afrikaner nogensinde – blevet optaget i det fornemme franske kunstakademi og skyndte sig at dedikere hædersbevisningen til Afrika og Nelson Mandela.
The 78-year-old, considered one of Africa’s foremost artists, dedicated the honour of joining to “all of Africa…and the great man Nelson Mandela” at a Paris ceremony on Wednesday, reports BBC online.
A minute’s silence for the anti-apartheid hero was also held.
Sow captured the world’s attention in 1999 when his larger-than-life wrestler sculptures were exhibited in Paris.
His latest ongoing series of work, entitled Great Me, features historical figures including Charles de Gaulle as well as Mandela.
His sculpture of the former South African president – made out of a mixture of clay and rubber – features Mandela as a goalkeeper extending his hand “to keep corrupt African heads of state at bay”.
The artist said sculptures of Martin Luther King, Muhammad Ali and Gandhi would also be included in his gallery of men who helped him “not despair of mankind”.
Born in Dakar, the artist left for France in 1957 where he obtained a diploma in physiotherapy.
Apart from a three year break in his home country, he made France his home for some 20 years before returning to Senegal in 1984 to make sculpting his full-time profession.
Læs mere om Ousmane Sow og hans arbejde på: http://www.ousmanesow.com/mac/en/art/biog/biog.htm
