About

Bio

Path — Dakar, Tokyo, Paris

TOUNKA is the artist name of Amadou Tounkara, a visual artist born in Dakar in 1973, living and working in France.

Born in Dakar in 1973, Amadou Tounkara lives and works in France. After a detour through the Dakar Faculty of Law, he turned to fine arts and trained at the National School of Fine Arts in Dakar. His training then led him to Tokyo, where he studied Japanese painting, graphic design and digital textile printing. His work carries the traces of these movements between Dakar, Tokyo and Paris.

Artistic approach

Thresholds, signs, architectures

His painting illustrates a critical analysis of our daily habits, cultural questions and the transformations taking place in our societies. He deliberately uses doors and windows as graphic tools to enter or leave a theme — fascinated by the "inside/outside", the symbolism and aesthetics they represent. Their use allows him to approach an infinity of subjects, creating an impression of "what lies beyond". Through painting, image, installation and performative practices, he questions what separates and what connects. The guiding thread of his work rests on the hypothesis that life is a perpetual crossing of doors.