La Famille 2 2020

Aboudia made this painting, La Famille 2, with bright colors and bold lines that really pop. You can almost feel the artist working, layering those colors, letting the image come into being through trial, error, and intuition. I imagine Aboudia standing there, maybe in a small studio in Abidjan, surrounded by the sounds and energy of the city. What was he thinking as he built up these figures? There’s a rawness to the paint – it's thick in some spots, scratched away in others. See how the yellow loops become eyes, mouths, torsos? It’s like he's building a whole world with each stroke. The way he's used color reminds me a little of Basquiat, but with its own rhythm. There's a real generosity in the way Aboudia uses paint. It reminds me that we, as artists, are always in conversation, riffing off each other, and finding our own voices. Painting is like that, an ongoing exchange. Each gesture holds intention, even when meaning stays slippery and open.