Alioune Diagne one of the most interesting contemporary painters from Senegal
Alioune Diagne is one of the most interesting contemporary painters to emerge from Senegal in the last decade. Born in Kaffrine, Senegal, in 1985, he studied at the Dakar School of Fine Arts and now works between Senegal and France. He gained international recognition through a distinctive visual language he calls “Figuro-Abstro”.
At first glance, his paintings look abstract. But as you move closer and then step back, figures, crowds, boats, markets, and everyday scenes emerge. He constructs images from thousands of tiny marks that resemble an invented script or calligraphy. These marks are what he calls “unconscious signs” – a personal visual language rather than a readable alphabet.
His paintings are beautiful on the surface, but they deal with serious subjects:
- Migration and dangerous sea crossings
- The lives of the African diaspora
- Environmental issues, especially overfishing and ocean degradation
- Racism and social inequality
- Women’s roles in society
- Cultural memory and heritage preservation
His current Paris exhibition, Saytu, shifts from migration toward cultural preservation. The title means “to search, examine, and preserve what is precious” in Wolof. For this project, Diagne traveled through remote regions of Senegal, documenting traditions of communities such as the Bassari, Bédik, Dialonké, and Coniagui peoples. The paintings celebrate rituals, dances, and customs that risk disappearing under modernization.
Place/ Tamplon Gallery Paris
ft/ Kate Zaniewska & Francis Kizinski
