The exhibition takes place on the second floor of Geary and provides a condensed view of the Love Suite Series a 2007 body of work carved and incised on wood panel. As Gerard McCarthy describes in his Art in America review of Afi’s work, “Nayo’s empathic imagery transcends specific traditions however and draws from the universal well of imagination and wonder. “ The works incorporate powerful images of leopards, figures and plant life. In each a dark corrugated panel surrounds central images that glow in contrast to the darkness of its borders.
Afi Nayo was born 1969 in Lome, Togo, West Africa and moved to Paris, France at an early age. After briefly attending the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, she began an active studio practice. Over the last two decades, she has participated in numerous exhibitions in Africa and Europe, including The French Cultural Centre, Lome, Togo; Galerie Vivienne, Paris, Galerie Nathalie Duchayne, Saint Tropez, France and Art Home in Belgium, she participated in the 2013 Dakar Sculpture Symposium and during The 2014 Dakar Biennale had a solo show at Aissa Dione Gallery. She is represented in several public and private collections including the National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC. She presently divides her time between Paris, France and Lome, Togo.