El Anatsui and the monumental cloth of bottle caps
Veröffentlicht: 27.06.2026 um 22:25 Uhr, Redaktion AD HOC NEWS, Redaktionelle Verantwortung: Rafael Müller (Chefredaktion)
El Anatsui has become synonymous with shimmering metal tapestries made from thousands of crimped bottle caps. His large-scale hanging sculptures have moved from West African studio walls into leading museum collections and biennial halls over the past two decades.
The metal cloth wall pieces
El Anatsui’s most recognizable work series consists of expansive wall-hung pieces assembled from liquor bottle tops, aluminum seals and copper wire, often stretching several meters across museum galleries. Each work is built from small units that studio assistants bend, pierce and join by hand.
The artist began working with bottle caps in the late 1990s after finding discarded material at a liquor depot in Nsukka, Nigeria, turning what was considered waste into a flexible sculptural language. Early pieces such as Earth’s Skin and Man’s Cloth already explored the tension between textile and metal surface.
Wood reliefs and early ceramics
Before the bottle-cap series, El Anatsui created carved wood reliefs and burnt-wood panels that engage with Ghanaian Adinkra symbols and other indigenous sign systems. These works often combine incised motifs with areas of scorching, creating layered dark and light fields.
In the 1970s and 1980s he also worked with ceramics, producing sculptural vessels and wall pieces that referenced traditional pottery while testing sculptural possibilities beyond functional form. This early period laid the conceptual ground for his later interest in materials that carry cultural memory.
Further news and background on El Anatsui
For more coverage of El Anatsui’s exhibitions, market milestones and museum presentations, the AD HOC NEWS archive offers additional reports and analyses.
How the artist builds his surfaces
El Anatsui’s bottle-cap pieces are constructed on the studio floor, where modules are arranged, adjusted and then lifted onto walls to test how they drape and catch the light. The works remain flexible, allowing curators to hang them in different configurations for each exhibition.
The artist describes the metal as behaving like cloth yet retaining the memory of industrial production and consumption. Patterning emerges through color groupings, repetitions and areas of dense or sparse attachment, recalling both woven kente cloth and abstract painting.
Where the artist stands now
Overall, El Anatsui’s practice continues to center on material transformation and expansive wall-based sculpture, with major examples held in museum collections and regularly reinstalled in changing configurations.
Key facts on El Anatsui
- Artist: El Anatsui
- Medium / Genre: Sculpture and installation (metal assemblage)
- Born: 1944, Anyako, Ghana
- Place(s) of practice: Studio activity between Ghana and Nigeria, long term based in Nsukka, Nigeria
- Active since: Early 1970s, with teaching and studio practice developing in Ghana and later in Nigeria
- Key work groups: metal bottle-cap cloths, carved and burnt wood panels, ceramic wall pieces, relief sculptures with found metal
- Current/last exhibition: Major survey exhibitions and permanent installations of bottle-cap works have been staged at institutions including the Brooklyn Museum and the Royal Academy of Arts in recent years, with ongoing collection displays.
- Major collections: Tate (London), Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), Brooklyn Museum (New York), Museum of Fine Arts (Boston), Centre Pompidou (Paris)
- Awards: Praemium Imperiale for Sculpture (2017), Venice Biennale Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement (2015)
- Next date: currently no announced date in the 30-day window
Frequently asked questions about El Anatsui
What defines El Anatsui’s signature bottle-cap works?
They are expansive wall-hung sculptures made from thousands of crimped liquor bottle tops tied with copper wire, forming flexible metal cloths that reference textiles, trade histories and recycling.
Where can El Anatsui’s works be seen in public collections?
Major examples are held by Tate in London, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Brooklyn Museum in New York, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and Centre Pompidou in Paris, among others.
Which major awards has El Anatsui received?
El Anatsui received the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Biennale in 2015 and the Praemium Imperiale for Sculpture in 2017, recognizing the global impact of his sculptural practice.
This article was produced with a.i. support and editorially reviewed. All statements without guarantee; auction results, exhibition dates and awards may change at short notice.
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