30r364 boek.qxd:awards book 11 - Prince Claus Fund

Ousmane SowSenegalSculptor extraordinaire of the human body, Ousmane Sow (b. 1935, Dakar) infuses his creationswith potent life force and raw energy. Inspired by Riefenstahl’s photos of the Nuba, he abandonedhis career as a physiotherapist, invented new techniques and materials, and created The Nuba,a group of muscular, virile, larger-than-life wrestlers (1984-87). Monumental representations ofThe Masai (1989) and The Zulus (1990) followed, and in 1992 his work was selected for DocumentaIX. Turning to global narrative, he produced a massive tableau ofThe Battle of Little Big Horn(1998). Audacious in size, Sow’s figures are modelled with proportional volume and anatomicaldetail, creating energy in frozen movement and strong human presence. The powerful physicalityof 68 of his figures exhibited on the Pont des Arts in Paris (1999), astonished the world and ledto commissions from the International Olympic Committee and the Medecins du Monde.Coming from a vacuum of representation of the African body and raising anxious ghostsof racism, Sow’s sculptures boldly confront stereotypes, representing the body without qualms.They carry a message of tolerance and humanity.Ousmane Sow is awarded for his powerful sculptures of the human body, for his inspirationalcelebration of the African body, and for challenging the international art world and influencingyoung generations of artists.[from the 2008 Prince Claus Awards Jury Report]Culture and the Human Body87