Vintage elements: Sourcing an aesthetic inspiration for contemporary Ghanaian painting

Abstract

This study identified and discussed how some contemporary Ghanaian painters have so much interest in vintage elements. The descriptive research method was used as a qualitative inquiry for this study. The expert type of purposive sampling method was employed to select five contemporary Ghanaian painters (Brother Owusu-Ankomah, Patrick Tagoe-Turkson, Elijah Sofo, Emmanuel Adiamah, and Papa Kofi Kum-Essoun) whose artworks focused on vintage elements in material content and subject matter. The study used direct observation and unstructured interviews to collect data. Thus, the data were analysed into an illustrative description using the visual analysis tool. The thoughts of interest of the five contemporary Ghanaian painters revealed that the incorporation of vintage subjects helped communicate their metaphysical ideas in an artistic context. The study argues that vintage elements are rife in Ghana and should not only be seen as material content but as scenic and thematic subjects for contemporary Ghanaian painting. It is, therefore, recommended that the thoughts and usage of vintage elements in the art of painting by the five contemporary Ghanaian painters (Brother Owusu-Ankomah, Patrick Tagoe-Turkson, Elijah Sofo, Emmanuel Adiamah, and Papa Kofi Kum-Essoun) should be continued to inspire other contemporary Ghanaian painters including the upcoming contemporary Ghanaian artists to also adopt vintage elements in their paintings to help communicate their metaphysical ideas into artistic contexts.