Famakan Magassa

Famakan Magassa (b. 1997, Mali) received his BFA in 2018 from Conservatoire Arts et Metiers Multimedia Balla Fasséke Kouyaté in Bamako, Mali. His paintings entwine the quotidian with social and socio-economic commentary, contending with themes ranging from displacement and corruption to intimacy and the hope for a better and brighter life. Magassa is invested in the full spectrum of human experience and human nature; his ability to blend humor and irony into his works allows him to effectively highlight the complexities and contradictions within society. 

Magassa breathes life into his provocative social commentaries through sardonic depictions of anthropomorphic subjects both experiencing and perpetuating injustices.  With an idiosyncratic approach, his paintings humorously delve into themes of gluttony and greed, exploring the unsettling reality of how the value of money often overshadows the value of human connections. Magassa’s work ultimately underscores the vital role of art as a means of critiquing and engaging with the world's social and economic challenges, making it a poignant and relevant contribution to contemporary discourse.  

Magassa exhibited for the first time in 2019 with several institutional shows, including presentations at L’Institute Français du Mali, Bamako; La Fondation La Maison de l’Artiste in Assinie, Côte d’Ivoire; and Les Magasins Généraux, BETC, Paris. In 2020, he was included in ‘L’exposition collective Jeunes Talents’ at the residence of the Ambassador to the European Union in Bamako, Mali and was one of the 2020 Laureates of the Cité Internationale des Arts Residency in Paris, France. He presented his first United States solo presentation in New York at albertz benda in 2022 which was followed by a second solo presentation in Los Angeles with the gallery in 2023. Magassa was awarded the Norval Sovereign African Art Prize in 2023 and presented his first solo institutional exhibition at the foundation in Cape Town. In addition to these exhibitions, Magassa has shown internationally in Paris, London, Miami, Ghana, and Vienna. His work has been featured by Artsy, Hyperallergic, Artnet, The Observer, L’Oeuil and ArtsMagazine.