Anyone can paint but it's the stories behind the images I create that matter most to me.
Kojo Marfo is a London-based artist whose paintings tell stories that pose universal questions. He combines the Akan iconography he grew up around in Ghana with Western references from his time in Europe and New York to create dreamlike scenes whose genderless figures transcend both worlds and are accessible to all.
Kojo, how did you arrive at creating art?
Coming to London as a teenager was a turning point for me - I visited lots of galleries and museums and that was the first time I knew I wanted to pursue art as a career. I always enjoyed art classes in school but seeing all those works in real life suddenly made me feel like I could do the same. I considered studying at St Martin's and had the chance to visit and speak to some professors but higher education wasn't for me. I thought they would try and mould me as an artist and I don't like being told what to do - the more people say 'let's do this, let's do that' I lose a sense of what matters to me.
