Célestin Koffi Yao

Célestin Koffi Yao was born in Daloa in 1971 and is a leading Ivorian artist and intellectual, holding a PhD in the Arts (Sorbonne) and diplomas from art schools in Abidjan and Paris. He has developed a technique that combines visual art, writing and research. As a visual artist, essayist, teacher and researcher, he explores memory, black identities and colonial legacies. Founder of the Sankozan cultural centre in Abobo, a suburb of Abidjan, Célestin Koffi Yao works to promote access to art and raise the profile of African skills. His eclectic and committed work draws on African symbols and history to explore social divisions and cultural resilience.