The Malian artist Abdoulaye Konaté is one of the most important contemporary artists on the African continent, and his work was featured in a solo exhibition at ARKEN in summer 2016. With funds from the New Carlsberg Foundation, the museum has now been able to acquire his work Le papillon noir et rouge [Black and red butterfly], thus enhancing its international collection.

Le papillon noir et rouge shows a butterfly with splayed wings in glowing colours. The simple motif is comprised of patches and strips of dyed cotton in graded colour harmonies. Museum Director Christian Gether explains that the butterfly motif holds special relevance for ARKEN and points to its symbolic role in Konaté’s engagement with social and geopolitical issues:           

‘Konate uses the butterfly, which is also an image found in several other principal works in ARKEN’s collection, including pieces by Damien Hirst and Peter Holst Henckel, as a general symbol of fragility and, here, with specific reference to the uncertain situation in postcolonial African states.’  In a comment, Konaté explained, ‘The vibrant colours of the butterfly remind me of the joy and vitality that people maintain, despite their situation and poverty.’

Christian Gether underscores that the museum’s collection strategy reflects the increasingly globalized contemporary art scene, which no longer has one single centre. In this context, Konaté is a very significant addition to ARKEN’s representation of international and non-Western artists.

‘The piece constitutes an important addition to our collection, which includes works by Marius Bercea (Rumania), Mona Hatoum (Palestine), Rashmi Kaleka (India), Qui Anxiong (China) and Pascale Marthine Tayou (Cameroun), among others. What they all have in common is that, like Konaté, they engage with the capacity of contemporary art to rewrite identity, tradition, power relations and international tragedies. These reflections are necessary in a time when globalization and migration processes have such a pivotal impact,’ says Gether.   

Konaté works with textiles as his principal medium with a basis in the rich traditions for cotton production in his native Mali. His works have previously been featured in international exhibitions, including documenta (12) in Kassel and Africa Remix: Contemporary Art of a Continent at The Hayward Gallery in London. Konaté is represented in the permanent collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam.