Tag Archives: Benin

My Spiritual Life and My Art by Pitar Alakhume

I’m Pitar Alakhume, a multimedia artist. I studied painting at the University of Benin, and I work across all traditional mediums.

My practice moves between analytic, real-life compositions and synthetic, abstract forms. I also run painting workshops called the edu-craft project. Spiritually, I’m grounded in nature.

If nature herself can’t explain it, I consider it social reality, not existence. So, my spirituality shows up in nature, not in creed. Right now, I spend most of my time creating from my studio in the countryside.

In the night, when the body is down, we are in a state of sleep, not aware of our physical bodies – only consciousness. Then, we enter into other dimensions of life because of the state of consciousness. God separates light so that consciousness can experience life outside itself.
In the realm of the unseen, where light is the bridge between dimensions, lies the spirit of a prophet. It’s the ability to transcend the confines of time and space, perceiving echoes of the past and whispers of the future. So experience a thing at night serval years after it comes to pass. Like a cosmic antenna, the prophet’s consciousness tunes into frequencies beyond the ordinary, decoding messages from the vast expanse.
Consider this: an alien 65 million light-years away would see dinosaurs roaming Earth, not humans in 2026. That’s how light paints our reality. The spirit of a prophet taps into this flow, seeing beyond the veil, navigating the multidimensional tapestry with eyes that pierce the fabric of time.

Shalom

written by ©Pitar Alakhume

Appliqués by Benin Artist Narcisse Dotou

Narcisse Daphnée Dotou crafts symbolic appliqués representing Vodun gods and African diaspora spirits. Dotou’s images encourage introspection, offering a visual journey into one’s inner self. The viewer is asked to concentrate on the visuals and consider them thoughtfully, just as one would with a tarot card. Only then can the object’s grandeur gain a mystical and meaningful quality.

To make an appliqué like this, you need at least three weeks before doing it. We make the drawings on paper and then we start by cutting things out. Materials include sewing needles scissors cotton fabric of different colors fabric. Everything is done by hand except the border which was done by machine. My teacher was François Codjo Yemadje who is from Abomey, Benin.

Narcisse Daphnée Dotou

Narcisse Daphnée Dotou was born on October 31, 1991 in Benin and has lived in the Mono department for a long time. He is an artist trained in the traditional art of tapestry sewing. The motifs of his refined works cover a wide spectrum. These include the varied symbolism of the ancient kings of Benin, which is the former Danhomey, representations of the traditional gods of Benin voodoo, Haitian voodoo, Cuba, but also modern themes and works made especially at the request of customers. In addition, Narcisse is an excellent connoisseur of the Cotonou art scene. He is happy to advise you and act as an intermediary if you have any wishes or requests.

Interested in Dotou’s appliques you can contact him via Facebook at Narcisse Daphnée Dotou.

The Voodoo-Culture Introduction from Soul of Africa Museum