29th Oct, 2025 12:00
Modern & Contemporary African & Middle Eastern Art
31
SOLY CISSE (SENEGALESE B.1969)
UNE VIE SOCIALE
signed SOLY lower right
oil on canvas
70.5 x 155.8cm; 27 3/4 x 61 1/4in
unframed
Property of a Private Collector, Kent
A graduate of the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts de Dakar, Soly Cissé is one of Senegal’s foremost contemporary artists, celebrated for his ability to merge figuration and abstraction in a vivid exploration of identity and modern life.
In Une vie sociale, Cissé captures the rhythm and vitality of postcolonial Senegalese society; its myths, traditions, and exuberant social gatherings, while alluding to the tensions that underlie this collective energy. The work resonates with the legacy of Négritude, whose early post-independence optimism celebrated African creativity and humanism as the foundations of national renewal. Here, Cissé reinterprets that vision through a contemporary lens: his layered forms evoke both precolonial visual culture juxtaposed with a distinct expressionism, a reflection of the harmony and dissonance of a society negotiating tradition, progress, and globalization.
Sold for £1,500
UNE VIE SOCIALE
signed SOLY lower right
oil on canvas
70.5 x 155.8cm; 27 3/4 x 61 1/4in
unframed
Property of a Private Collector, Kent
A graduate of the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts de Dakar, Soly Cissé is one of Senegal’s foremost contemporary artists, celebrated for his ability to merge figuration and abstraction in a vivid exploration of identity and modern life.
In Une vie sociale, Cissé captures the rhythm and vitality of postcolonial Senegalese society; its myths, traditions, and exuberant social gatherings, while alluding to the tensions that underlie this collective energy. The work resonates with the legacy of Négritude, whose early post-independence optimism celebrated African creativity and humanism as the foundations of national renewal. Here, Cissé reinterprets that vision through a contemporary lens: his layered forms evoke both precolonial visual culture juxtaposed with a distinct expressionism, a reflection of the harmony and dissonance of a society negotiating tradition, progress, and globalization.
Auction: Modern & Contemporary African & Middle Eastern Art, 29th Oct, 2025
If you want to start collecting striking modern and contemporary art in a newly developing market, our sales are for you. Each spring and autumn, the Modern and Contemporary African and Middle Eastern Department hold tightly curated, live and online auctions. Expect to find Arab artists such as Tahia Halim, Seif Wanly, Mahmoud Said and Mohanna Durra. African artists featured have ranged from modern masters such as Ablade Glover, Sam Ntiro and Jacob Hendrik Pierneef, to contemporary artists George Lilanga, Jilali Gharbaoui, Famakan Magassa, Christano Mangovo, Oluwole Omofemi, Esther Mahlangu and Brett Seiler.
PUBLIC EXHIBITION:
Sunday 26th October: 12pm to 4pm
Monday 27th October: 10am to 8pm (Drinks 5-8pm)
Tuesday 28th October: 10am to 5pm
