Cyprien Tokoudagba

Cyprien Tokoudagba has been working in art for the majority of his 70 years. While he originally worked on decorating Voudou temples with deities, his inclusion in the 1989 Paris exhibition "Magiciens de la Terre" eventually led him to painting on canvas.


At an early age, Tokoudagba was sent to a Voudou temple to learn the skills of the priesthood. While he would eventually follow a different path in life (in addition to his work as an artist, he also worked as an art restorer at the Abomey Museum in Benin), the religious symbols and traditions of Voudou can be seen throughout his work.


For example in this painting, this rainbow serpent is a depiction of the god Da who encompasses both the physical and spiritual earth. The blue color represents female and the red represents male.


See more about Tokoudagba's work here.

{Photos from Cyprien Tokoudagba & ARTExplorer}