Independent curator, cultural consultant, and founder of Art Kelen — connecting African contemporary art with the world through exhibition, community, and commerce.
Founder & Director
Art Kelen
"African contemporary art belongs at the centre of the global conversation."
— Daffa Konate, Founder
Daffa Konate✦Cultural Consultant✦Independent Curator✦Gallery Management✦Interior Art Curation✦Events Production✦Art Kelen Circle✦Daffa Konate✦Cultural Consultant✦Independent Curator✦Gallery Management✦Interior Art Curation✦Events Production✦Art Kelen Circle✦
What Daffa Builds
01 — Marketplace
Global Art Marketplace
A curated global platform where artists worldwide list their work. Collectors discover, enquire, and buy. Art Kelen earns a percentage on every sale.
BROWSE WORKS →
02 — Community
Art Kelen Circle
A curated membership for collectors, enthusiasts, and cultural professionals — exclusive events, early access, and a genuine community built by Daffa.
JOIN THE CIRCLE →
03 — Consultancy
Cultural Consultancy
Exhibition design, gallery management, interior art curation, and events production — Daffa works with institutions and private clients worldwide.
BOOK DAFFA →
The Founder
Daffa
Konate
Daffa Konate is an independent curator and cultural consultant whose practice spans exhibition design, gallery management, interior art curation, and events production. She founded Art Kelen to build a platform worthy of African contemporary art.
Working across Paris, Dakar, and internationally, she curates physical and virtual exhibitions, advises galleries on programming strategy, and places art in residential and commercial interiors.
01
Exhibition Design
Concept to installation — exhibitions that tell stories with precision and cultural depth.
02
Gallery Management
Programming, acquisition strategy, and operational consultancy for galleries.
03
Interior Art Curation
Sourcing and placing art within residential and commercial interiors.
04
Events & Vernissages
From intimate collector evenings to large-scale cultural gatherings.
Marketplace
Featured Works
I
Inheritance No. 3
Kofi Mensah · Accra
€1,200Oil on Canvas
II
Lagos at Dusk
Aminata Diallo · Dakar
€850Photography
III
Reclaimed I
Chidi Okonkwo · Lagos
€3,400Sculpture
IV
The Archive Speaks
Fatoumata Coulibaly · Abidjan
€2,100Mixed Media
42
Artists on Platform
18
Countries Reached
12
Exhibitions Curated
800+
Circle Members
Daffa Konate — Art Kelen
"Working with Daffa transformed what we thought our exhibition programme could be. Her curatorial instinct is unlike anything we have encountered."
Marie-Claire D. — Cultural Director, Lyon
"Through Art Kelen Circle I have discovered artists I would never have found anywhere else. The community is genuine, the access extraordinary."
Taiwo A. — Collector, Lagos
"The interior curation Daffa provided for our hotel was impeccable. Every piece chosen with context, intention, and cultural depth."
Hôtel Lumière — Paris
Writing by Daffa Konate
Editorial
Essay I
Curatorial Essay
The Architecture of Memory in West African Photography
How photographers across Senegal, Ghana, and Nigeria reconstruct histories that colonial archives deliberately erased.
Feb 2026
Essay II
Artist Spotlight
Kofi Mensah: Between the Kente and the Canvas
A studio visit and extended conversation with the Ghanaian painter acquired by three major European collections.
Jan 2026
Essay III
Curatorial Essay
What Does It Mean to Curate Africa?
On the responsibilities that come with positioning oneself as a curatorial voice for a continent of 54 countries.
Jan 2026
Art Kelen Circle
Join the Community Around African Contemporary Art
Curated membership for collectors, enthusiasts, and cultural professionals. Exclusive events and early access — built by Daffa Konate.
DISCOVERY
Free
CIRCLE MEMBER
€12 / month
PATRON
€35 / month
The Art Kelen Digest
Stay Inside the Conversation on African Contemporary Art
Daffa's letter. New artists before they appear on the platform. Exhibition dispatches. Market intelligence. Monthly — never more.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Daffa writes every letter herself.
Home/Marketplace
Art Kelen Marketplace
Original Works from Global Artists
Curated by Daffa Konate. Every artist selected and approved by the Art Kelen team.
214 works available
|
All MediaPaintingPhotographySculptureMixed MediaPrintTextileUnder €500€500–€2,000€2,000+
I
Inheritance No. 3
Kofi Mensah · Accra
€1,200Oil on Canvas
II
Lagos at Dusk
Aminata Diallo · Dakar
€850Photography
III
Reclaimed I
Chidi Okonkwo · Lagos
€3,400Sculpture
IV
The Archive Speaks
Fatoumata Coulibaly · Abidjan
€2,100Mixed Media
V
Ndawrabine Series
Ibou Sarr · Dakar
€680Photography
VI
Urban Geometry II
Kwame Asante · Kumasi
€1,550Painting
VII
Portrait of Silence
Nadia Ben Salem · Tunis
€920Photography
VIII
Feminine Archive
Ama Owusu · Accra
€2,800Mixed Media
Home/Artists
The Artists
Artists on Art Kelen
Every artist selected and championed by Daffa Konate. The Art Kelen curatorial team reviews all applications personally.
Large-scale canvases merging Ghanaian textile patterns with contemporary urban imagery, pulsing with cultural memory.
8 Works AvailableVIEW →
AD
Aminata Diallo
Dakar, Senegal · Photography
Long-exposure portraiture capturing the quiet dignity of everyday West African life, rendering the familiar as monumental.
12 Works AvailableVIEW →
CO
Chidi Okonkwo
Lagos, Nigeria · Sculpture
Reclaimed metal and wood figurative sculpture interrogating masculinity, labour, and transformation in post-industrial Africa.
6 Works AvailableVIEW →
FC
Fatoumata Coulibaly
Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire · Mixed Media
Fabric, found text, and pigment layered to speak to female lineage, inheritance, and the body as archive.
9 Works AvailableVIEW →
KA
Kwame Asante
Kumasi, Ghana · Painting
Saturated figurative paintings celebrating Ghanaian social life with a sense of joy that is both political and deeply personal.
11 Works AvailableVIEW →
NB
Nadia Ben Salem
Tunis, Tunisia · Photography
Portraiture and landscape exploring the intersection of Arab and Sub-Saharan African identities across the Saharan threshold.
7 Works AvailableVIEW →
Are you an artist?
Apply to Join the Platform
Art Kelen works with artists who have a strong, consistent practice and a desire to reach international collectors. Applications reviewed by Daffa personally.
Home/Gallery
The Exhibition Space
Art Kelen Gallery
Curated virtual exhibitions — immersive, contextual, and built to travel beyond physical borders. Every show personally designed by Daffa Konate.
Currently On View · Feb–Jun 2026
Echoes of
Tomorrow
Seven artists engage with the question of futurity — what does tomorrow look like when your past has been systematically suppressed, and your present is constantly contested?
"This exhibition refuses the logic of arrival. It insists, instead, on the generative power of becoming." — Daffa Konate, Curator
Each room stages a distinct question. Visitors move between them as they might move between chapters of a single continuous thought.
Room I
The Weight of Naming
How do African artists reclaim the right to name their own practice — outside the categories imposed by the Western market and institution? Mensah and Coulibaly in dialogue.
4 Works · Mensah · Coulibaly
Room II
Bodies in Time
Figurative work across two generations — exploring how the Black body is represented, dis-represented, and re-imagined across African contemporary art.
3 Works · Diallo · Okonkwo
Room III
Material Memory
Objects, textiles, and found materials as archives. Artists who build their practices around what was left behind — cloth, language, geography, dust.
4 Works · Asante · Ben Salem · Sarr
Selected Works — Echoes of Tomorrow
Available for Acquisition
I
Room I
Inheritance No. 3
Kofi Mensah · Accra
€1,200Oil on Canvas
II
Room II
Lagos at Dusk
Aminata Diallo · Dakar
€850Photography
III
Room III
Reclaimed I
Chidi Okonkwo · Lagos
€3,400Sculpture
IV
Room I
The Archive Speaks
Fatoumata Coulibaly · Abidjan
€2,100Mixed Media
Exhibition Archive
Sep–Dec 2025
Harmattan Light: West African Photography
Diallo · Sarr · Ben Salem · 3 guest artists · 18 works
Closed
Apr–Aug 2025
Threads: Textile as Language
Coulibaly · Asante · Mokoena · 12 works
Closed
Jan–Mar 2025
Inaugural: Forty-Two Artists, One Vision
All 42 roster artists · Opening platform exhibition · 42 works
Closed
Opening June 2026
Ndebele Now: Geometry as Language
Six artists reimagine the bold geometric traditions of Ndebele visual culture through a contemporary lens — across painting, installation, textile, and digital work. The most formally ambitious show Art Kelen has yet presented.
Preview I
Preview II
Preview III
Opening Jun 2026
Home/Events
Cultural Calendar
Events & Gatherings
Vernissages, collector evenings, artist talks, and cultural gatherings produced by Daffa Konate across Europe and Africa.
All EventsVernissagesTalks & PanelsCollector EveningsVirtual EventsInternational
Vernissage · Paris
Echoes of Tomorrow Opening Night
Date
Friday, 14 March 2026
Time
18h30 – 22h00
Venue
Galerie Beaumont, 14 rue de Rivoli Paris 1er, France
Circle Priority
About This Evening
The opening vernissage of Echoes of Tomorrow brings together collectors, curators, press, and Art Kelen Circle members for an evening with the artists.
The evening opens with a conversation between Daffa Konate and two exhibiting artists, followed by a private preview of all three rooms before the gallery opens to the full guest list.
Evening Programme
18h30Circle members preview & artist arrival
19h30Conversation: Daffa Konate & Kofi Mensah
20h15Gallery opens to full guest list
22h00Close. Works available to collect.
Upcoming Events
APR
18
2026
Artist Talk · Dakar, Senegal
Conversations: Kofi Mensah in Dialogue
Musée Théodore Monod, Dakar · 16h00–18h00
An in-depth conversation on Mensah's practice, his use of Ghanaian textile forms, and his experience of the international art market as an African artist working from Accra.
Public
MAY
06
2026
Collector Evening · London, UK
Art Kelen Patron Evening — Spring 2026
Private venue, Mayfair · 19h30–22h30 · Patron & Circle only
A private collector evening in London featuring new acquisitions by three Art Kelen artists, a curator's walkthrough with Daffa, and a sit-down dinner for twenty-four guests.
Patron Only
MAY
22
2026
Virtual Event · Online
Virtual Studio Visit: Fatoumata Coulibaly
Zoom · 18h00 CET · Circle members
Join Daffa and Fatoumata Coulibaly for a 90-minute live studio visit from Abidjan. Coulibaly shares her process, discusses new work in progress, and takes questions from Circle members.
Circle
JUN
14
2026
Panel Discussion · Paris
Who Owns the Narrative? African Art in European Institutions
Centre Pompidou, Paris · 14h00–17h00 · Bilingual FR/EN
Daffa Konate in conversation with curators from three major European institutions on representation, restitution, and the future of African art in European collections.
Public
JUN
28
2026
Vernissage · Lagos, Nigeria
Ndebele Now — Lagos Preview Night
LagosPhoto Festival Partner · Victoria Island · 18h00–21h00
The Lagos premiere of Ndebele Now, staged in partnership with LagosPhoto Festival. Circle members and press preview, followed by a public opening the following evening.
Circle Priority
Past Events
Sep 2025
Sep 2025 · Galerie Beaumont, Paris
Harmattan Light Opening Vernissage
82 guests · 18 works sold · 6 press features
Jul 2025
Jul 2025 · Private Residence, London
Summer Patron Dinner 2025
24 guests · 3 acquisitions · Patron tier only
Jan 2025
Jan 2025 · Dakar & Paris · Simultaneous
Art Kelen Platform Launch
200+ guests across two cities · 42 artists debuted
Institutions & Partners
Host an Art Kelen Event at Your Institution
Art Kelen produces events in partnership with cultural institutions, embassies, galleries, and commercial venues. From intimate collector dinners to large-scale public programmes — we bring African contemporary art into every kind of space.
Venue Partnership
Provide the space, we produce the programme. For galleries, foundations, embassies, and hotels.
Curatorial Partnership
Full co-production of an exhibition or event programme, co-branded under Art Kelen and your institution.
Sponsorship
Support Art Kelen's public programming as a named sponsor. Available for individual events or the full annual programme.
Home/Editorial
Art Kelen Editorial
Writing at the Intersection
Curatorial essays, artist spotlights, market analysis, and cultural commentary by Daffa Konate and invited writers. Published monthly.
The Architecture of Memory in West African Photography
Curatorial Essay12 min read · Feb 2026
In the years following independence, the photographic archive in many West African countries did not survive the transition intact. Files were moved, mislabelled, and in some cases deliberately destroyed. What we call "the historical record" of post-colonial West Africa is, in reality, a highly curated selection — and its curation was rarely done by African hands.
The photographers working across Senegal, Ghana, and Nigeria today are not simply documenting the present. They are, often consciously, building a visual archive that the past failed to produce.
"Every image made today is also a refusal — a refusal to allow the visual archive of this continent to remain in other hands."
— Daffa Konate
By
Daffa Konate
Recent Writing
Artist Spotlight
Artist Spotlight8 min · Jan 2026
Kofi Mensah: Between the Kente and the Canvas
A studio visit and extended conversation with the Ghanaian painter acquired by three major European collections. Mensah speaks about the deliberate tension between Ghanaian textile tradition and contemporary painting — and why he refuses to resolve it.
Market Analysis
Market Analysis6 min · Jan 2026
The African Art Market in 2025: A Year of Divergence
Auction results, gallery representation shifts, and collector behaviour tell three different stories about African contemporary art's place in the global market. Daffa unpacks a year of signals — and what they mean for artists and collectors in 2026.
Curatorial Essay
Curatorial Essay10 min · Jan 2026
What Does It Mean to Curate Africa?
On the responsibilities and contradictions that come with positioning oneself as a curatorial voice for a continent of 54 countries, 3,000 languages, and an artistic tradition that predates the museum by millennia.
Diaspora
Diaspora9 min · Dec 2025
Aminata Diallo: Portraying the Ordinary as Monument
Diallo's long-exposure photography is described as "monumental" — but what makes it so is not grand subject matter. It is the insistence that the everyday dignity of West African life deserves the visual attention reserved, in most traditions, for the exceptional.
Exhibition Review
Exhibition Review5 min · Nov 2025
Harmattan Light Reviewed: What the Show Did and What It Left
Daffa Konate writes about her own exhibition with the distance that closing night allows. What worked, what she would change, and what the show revealed about West African photography in 2025.
Commentary
Cultural Commentary7 min · Oct 2025
Restitution Is Not Enough: Objects Return, Context Does Not
As European museums return looted objects, Daffa argues the objects travel without the knowledge frameworks that gave them meaning — a continuation of extraction by other means.
Subscribe to the Editorial
New essays, monthly. Daffa writes every one.
Join 4,200 readers — curators, collectors, artists, and anyone who cares deeply about African contemporary art and the conversations shaping it.
Art Kelen Circle
A Community at the Centre of African Art
The Art Kelen Circle is not a subscription service. It is a curated community — for collectors, professionals, and passionate individuals who believe African contemporary art deserves the kind of sustained attention it has rarely been given.
800+
Active Members Across 32 Countries
24
Events per Year
12
Studio Visits Annually
4
Quarterly Reports
€0
to Start
Why the Circle Exists
This Is Not a Subscription. It Is a Commitment.
Founded because Daffa Konate believed that the most meaningful relationship with African art happens in community — not in isolation.
African contemporary art has arrived on the world stage. The institutions are paying attention. The auction houses have noticed. The art fairs have opened their doors. But the infrastructure around that attention — the relationships, the knowledge, the access — remains unevenly distributed.
Art Kelen Circle was built to change that. It is a space where collectors can develop their eye, where cultural professionals can deepen their knowledge, and where everyone who cares about African contemporary art can do so in the company of others who feel the same.
Daffa Konate is present in the Circle — in the monthly letter she writes to every member, in the studio visits she personally leads, in the conversations she facilitates between collectors and artists. This is not automated. It is curatorial relationship, extended.
"The Circle is the most honest version of what I believe a cultural institution can be — a committed, personal, ongoing relationship between art and the people who love it."
— Daffa Konate, Founder
Who Is the Circle For
For Collectors
Building a collection with depth and intention
Whether forming your first collection or refining one built over decades, the Circle gives you direct access to Daffa's curatorial eye through early previews, collector guidance sessions, and a community of peers.
✶Early access to new artists before platform listing
✶Quarterly Collector Report on the African art market
✶Collector guidance sessions with Daffa (Patron tier)
✶Priority placement at vernissages and acquisition events
For Cultural Professionals
Deepening your engagement with African contemporary art
Curators, gallerists, critics, educators, and institutional professionals — the Circle gives you direct access to artists, curatorial thinking, and a peer network across Europe and Africa.
✶Direct artist access through studio visits and talks
✶Curatorial notes and exhibition texts by Daffa
✶Professional network across institutions and practices
✶Invitation to participate in Circle panels and talks
For Enthusiasts
Growing your passion and knowledge for African art
You don’t need to be a collector or professional. If African contemporary art matters to you — if you want to understand it, discuss it, and be around people who feel the same — the Circle is your home.
✶Full editorial archive and all curatorial writing
✶Daffa's monthly letter and digest
✶Public event invitations and virtual programming
✶Member community platform and discussions
What You Receive
Everything the Circle Produces, Curated by Daffa
Everything Art Kelen produces for the Circle is made by Daffa or under her direct supervision. Nothing is automated. Every letter, every event, every studio visit — these are acts of curation.
The tier you choose determines the depth of access. But all tiers begin with the same commitment: Daffa’s personal attention, extended through a community.
Monthly
The Art Kelen Letter
Daffa’s personal monthly letter on what she is looking at, thinking about, and curating. The most personal thing Art Kelen produces.
Monthly
New Artist Previews
Circle members see new artists and works before they appear on the platform — and can enquire before public listing opens.
Quarterly
Collector Market Report
A 20-page report on the African art market — auction results, gallery movements, pricing trends, and Daffa’s analysis of where the market is heading.
Quarterly
Virtual Studio Visit
A 90-minute live visit to an Art Kelen artist’s studio. Daffa leads. Members ask questions directly. Recorded for those who cannot attend live.
Annual · Patron
Personal Advisory Session
A one-to-one 60-minute conversation with Daffa about your collection or cultural practice. By video or in person when possible.
Annual · Patron
Private Patron Evening
Invitation to the annual Patron Evening — an intimate dinner and private viewing for 24 Patron members and 4 artists in a major European city.
Members Say
"The Collector Report alone is worth the membership. Three acquisitions I made in 2025 were directly informed by Daffa’s market analysis. The access is extraordinary."
Taiwo A. — Collector, Lagos · Patron member since 2025
"As a curator at a major institution, the Circle gives me access to conversations I cannot have anywhere else. The quality of thinking is genuinely rare."
Marie-Claire D. — Curator, Lyon · Circle member since 2025
"I came as an enthusiast. I left the first studio visit wanting to start collecting. Daffa does not just give you access — she changes how you see."
James O. — Cultural enthusiast, London · Discovery member since 2025
Membership Tiers
Discovery
Free
✓Full editorial archive access
✓Art Kelen Letter (monthly)
✓Public event listings & registration
✓Community platform access
—New artist previews
—Quarterly market report
Circle Member
€12
per month · cancel anytime
✓Everything in Discovery
✓New artist previews (early access)
✓Quarterly Collector Report
✓Virtual studio visits (live + recorded)
✓Circle-priority event access
✓Exclusive Circle pricing on works
—Annual advisory session
Patron
€35
per month · cancel anytime
✓Everything in Circle
✓Annual personal advisory session
✓Annual Patron Evening (private dinner)
✓First access to Patron-only events
✓Named in annual exhibition catalogue
✓Artist introduction & commission facilitation
✓Custom acquisition strategy session
✓Dedicated Daffa concierge line
Annual plans available at 2 months free. Group & institutional memberships on request.
Cultural Consultancy
Daffa
Konate
Daffa Konate is an independent curator and cultural consultant working with institutions, galleries, and private clients across Europe and Africa. Her practice spans exhibition design, gallery management, interior art curation, and cultural events production.
FrenchEnglishAvailable
Services
01
Exhibition Design
Curatorial concept development, artist selection, exhibition design, and installation supervision — from brief to opening night.
02
Gallery Management
Programming strategy, acquisition consultancy, operational management, and staff development for galleries deepening their engagement with African art.
03
Interior Art Curation
Sourcing and placing original artworks within residential and commercial interiors — hotels, offices, private homes — with full advisory support.
04
Events & Vernissages
Full production of cultural events including vernissages, collector evenings, artist talks, workshops, and multi-venue cultural programmes.
05
Multi-Regional Parcours
Curated art journeys across multiple venues, cities, or countries — combining exhibition design, cultural production, and community engagement at scale.
06
Strategic Advisory
Strategic guidance for institutions, foundations, and private collectors seeking to develop or reorient their relationship with African contemporary art.
Book a Consultation
Work Directly with Daffa
For institutional commissions, gallery management, interior curation, and events production, submit an enquiry and Daffa will respond within two working days.
"Daffa brought a rigour and cultural depth to our programme that we simply could not have achieved without her. The results exceeded every expectation."
Programme Director · Centre Culturel de Lyon
Home/About
About Daffa
Independent curator, cultural consultant, and founder of Art Kelen.
The Founder
Daffa Konate
Daffa Konate is an independent curator and cultural consultant whose practice spans exhibition design, gallery management, interior art curation, and events production. She founded Art Kelen to build a platform worthy of African contemporary art — one that serves both artists and collectors without compromise.
Working across Paris, Dakar, Lagos, and internationally, Daffa curates physical and virtual exhibitions, advises galleries on programming strategy, and places art in residential and commercial interiors for clients who understand that art is a form of commitment.
She conducts her practice in French and English and works across disciplines — from the intimate (a single collector's home) to the institutional (multi-year gallery programming consultancies).
12
Exhibitions Curated
18
Countries
42
Artists Represented
800+
Circle Members
Home/Press
Press & Media Centre
Press Room
Press materials, releases, media coverage, and contact for journalists, editors, and broadcast producers.
Latest Press Release
Art Kelen Announces Its Third Virtual Exhibition: Echoes of Tomorrow
For Immediate Release · Paris, 14 January 2026
Art Kelen, the Paris-based African contemporary art platform founded by curator Daffa Konate, announces its third major virtual exhibition: Echoes of Tomorrow, opening 14 March 2026.
The exhibition brings together seven artists from Accra, Dakar, Lagos, Abidjan, Kumasi, and Tunis, working across painting, photography, sculpture, textile, and mixed media.
Press Enquiries
For image licensing, interviews, exhibition previews, and all media enquiries:
Press Contact
press@artkelen.com
Response Time
Within 48 hours
Languages
French · English
Press Kit Includes
— High-resolution exhibition images
— Artist biographies and portraits
— Daffa Konate biography and headshots
— Art Kelen platform fact sheet
— Exhibition curatorial statement
As Featured In
Le Monde
The Art Newspaper
Artforum
BBC Culture
frieze
ArtReview
Vogue Africa
This Is Africa
Selected Coverage
Le Monde Culture
Jan 2026
«Une commissaire qui change la narration de l’art africain»
A major profile on Daffa Konate’s curatorial approach and Art Kelen’s growing influence — featured in Le Monde’s Saturday culture supplement.
Interview
The Art Newspaper
Dec 2025
"Ten curators reshaping the African art conversation in 2026"
Daffa Konate named as one of ten international curators to watch in 2026, noted for Art Kelen’s "unusually coherent curatorial vision in a digital context."
Feature
Artforum
Nov 2025
"Harmattan Light reviewed: a model for the virtual African exhibition"
Critical review calling it "perhaps the most thoughtfully designed online exhibition format currently available to artists working outside major market centres."
Review
BBC Culture
Oct 2025
"The platforms redefining how the world buys African art"
Art Kelen featured in BBC Culture’s investigation into the changing infrastructure of the global African art market.
Feature
frieze
Sep 2025
"Exhibition Focus: Threads and Harmattan Light"
Double review of Art Kelen’s first two exhibitions in frieze’s September print and digital editions.
Review
Recognition & Awards
2025
Fondation Orange — Arts Numériques Grant
Selected for innovation in digital cultural programming
2025
ArtReview Future Greats — Longlist
Daffa Konate longlisted in ArtReview’s annual Future Greats feature
2024
Dakar Contemporary — Young Curator Award
For curatorial work at the 2024 Dakar Biennial
Book a Media Interview
Home/Contact
Contact
For enquiries about artworks, consultancy, Circle membership, or press — get in touch.
Apply to join Art Kelen’s curated roster. All applications reviewed personally by Daffa Konate. This is not an algorithm — it is a curatorial selection.
Before You Apply
Art Kelen works with artists who are ready.
Daffa Konate reviews every application personally. She is looking for a consistent, developed practice — not necessarily a famous one — and a genuine desire to reach international collectors through a platform that will champion your work.
Art Kelen is for artists whose practice is already moving: consistent work, some exhibition history, readiness for international attention.
Daffa Responds To
✓All complete applications within 3 weeks
✓Artists working anywhere in the world
✓All media and disciplines
Commission Structure
20% on each sale
Art Kelen takes 20%. The artist receives 80%, paid within 14 days of confirmed sale.
01 — Personal Identity
02 — Your Practice
03 — Works & Pricing
04 — Your Statement
05 — Portfolio & Documentation
PDF or ZIP · Max 20MB
JPG, PNG or PDF · Max 5MB · Handled securely and confidentially
Reviews, catalogues, press clippings. Up to 3 files, max 10MB each.
06 — Agreement
All submissions reviewed personally by Daffa Konate. Response within 3 weeks. Not all applications will result in an invitation.
Painting · Accra, Ghana · b. 1988
Kofi
Mensah
Large-scale canvases merging Ghanaian textile patterns with contemporary urban imagery. Mensah’s work has been acquired by three major European collections and exhibited at 1:54 and the Palais de Tokyo.
KM
8
Works Available
34
Works Sold
12
Exhibitions
3
Major Collections
Biography
Kofi Mensah (b. 1988, Accra) began painting seriously during his studies at the Ghanatta College of Art and Design in Accra, where he developed his foundational interest in the visual grammar of Ghanaian textile traditions — particularly Kente and Kpokpo weaving. After graduating, he spent two years in the United Kingdom on an artist residency, an experience that sharpened his sense of the African body in diaspora and the politics of where African images are made and viewed.
His paintings are large — rarely smaller than 120 centimetres — and built in layers over weeks or months. Mensah describes the process as “painting in conversation with the canvas”: initial marks made quickly, then responded to slowly, each subsequent layer deciding the fate of what came before. The result is a surface of tremendous density, where passages of clarity emerge from what might otherwise be an unresolvable visual field.
He has been collected by the Saatchi Gallery, the Pigozzi Collection, and a private Belgian collection. His work has been exhibited at 1:54 African Art Fair (London and New York), Palais de Tokyo (Paris), and galleries across Accra and Lagos.
Artist Statement
“The Kente cloth is not decoration. It is information — a visual encoding of social position, occasion, lineage. When I paint with its logic, I am not making African-themed paintings. I am making arguments in a language that is already complete.”
“My paintings begin in Ghana and finish in Europe. That geography is not accidental. The conversation I am having — between the aesthetic traditions I grew up with and the institutions that will eventually judge my work — is a conversation about power. I try to make that conversation visible.”
— Kofi Mensah, 2025
In the Collections of
Saatchi Gallery, London
Pigozzi Collection, Geneva
Private Belgian Collection
Represented By
Art Kelen (International)
Non-exclusive · All territories
Press
“One of the most significant painters emerging from West Africa.”
Artforum, 2025
“Tradition as argument, not decoration.”
Art Kelen Editorial, Jan 2026
Enquire or Commission
To enquire about specific works, discuss availability, or request a commission, contact Daffa directly.
