Kumasi Realism, 1951-2007: An African Modernism

'The so-called great divide between an African modernism and continuing traditions of art-making still perplex and unsettle many. Kumasi Realism is a substantial contribution to the debate, all the more so for being written by one of Ghana's leading practitioners; an artist of international standing, but whose focus here is firmly on the local. Atta Kwami is able to offer a detailed and comparative analysis of artistic production in Kumasi, while at the same time producing a substantial historical review of the ways in which visual culture developed along various paths to produce, "an evolving local visual modernity." This is an important, generous and beautiful book.' - Will Rea, Senior Lecturer in African Art History, University of Leeds