Amsterdam was the first city outside his native city Dakar that Fally Sene Sow visited. Immediately he was mesmerized by the canals, the colors, the light and the people.
That’s why he painted a sign with ‘Feel good’ on the Amsterdam scene he created in the 3 (!) days he spent here after a residency in Madrid. During his first visit to Amsterdam he saw people skating on the frozen canals. Yesterday I visited his temporary studio at SBK Galerie 23 African Art. We know each other from earlier visits and I even saw him in Dakar years ago. Fally uses a very special technique: behind glass (spraycan)painting in combination with collages. Last year Black Achievement Month magazine was one of the sources of his Amsterdam piece. As well as red sand from the Namibian desert, that gallerist Fons Geerlings had bought. The red sand became the Amsterdam bricks. Fally showed me his recent innovation: a piece of flexiglass behind the glass on which he works. The orange colored sky feels like an abstract painting. Fally told me the photos of the work he posted are an instants hits with his family and friends and others artists in Senegal. What a wonderful image of Amsterdam to travel the world.
Annemarie de Wildt – Curator Amsterdam Museum
