From PhillyVoice · · 1m 50s
El Anatsui's 90-work exhibition lands in Philly
The Philadelphia Museum of Art opens a major show of the Ghanaian artist's five decades of innovative printmaking this December.
In brief
The Philadelphia Museum of Art opens a major show of the Ghanaian artist's five decades of innovative printmaking this December. El Anatsui's exhibition demonstrates how everyday discarded materials can become powerful art through experimental printmaking techniques. Originally reported by PhillyVoice.
Major Anatsui show opens in December
The Philadelphia Museum of Art will debut 'El Anatsui: Prints and Play' on December 19, featuring over 90 works by the internationally acclaimed Ghanaian artist across five decades.
Artist transforms everyday trash into art
Anatsui is known for creating large-scale sculptures from discarded bottle caps and other everyday materials, reimagining waste as powerful artistic statements.
Unconventional printmaking materials
For his prints, Anatsui uses cassava graters, weathered wooden market trays, newspaper printing plates, and studio wood scraps instead of traditional printmaking tools.
Cassava grater piece towers 10 feet
One work, 'Untitled (Cassava Graters Imprints and Collage)' from 2016, was printed directly from metal cassava graters onto 24 sheets of paper, standing nearly 10 feet tall when assembled.
Five decades of artistic evolution
The exhibition spans from the 1980s to present, showing how Anatsui has experimented with different materials and techniques, including 'Terrain,' a 2025 digital print on formed aluminum sheets.
Philadelphia connection with Brandywine
Anatsui has collaborated with Brandywine Workshop and Archives, including the 2022 woodcut 'In the Water.' Brandywine will present a related exhibition exploring his materials and techniques.
Sculpture already on view at PMA
A large-scale Anatsui sculpture unveiled in the museum's Williams Forum in 2024 will remain on display through April 2027, giving visitors another chance to experience his work.
Exhibition runs through May 2027
El Anatsui: Prints and Play opens December 19, 2026 and runs through May 2, 2027 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
The big picture
El Anatsui's exhibition demonstrates how everyday discarded materials can become powerful art through experimental printmaking techniques.
/file/attachments/2999/41_389608.png)
/file/attachments/orphans/DMXCREATIONAFRICAROLLOUT-POST9-BIO_471227.png)
