Issoufou Lankondé

Issoufou Lankondé (born July 4, 1954 in Winditane , † January 28, 2014 in Niamey ) was a Nigerien sculptor .

Life

Issoufou Lankondé was the son of a soldier. He attended the École Canada school in Niamey. His talent for drawing showed at an early age . He came into permanent contact with sculpture through his participation in an exhibition at the Center Culturel Franco-Nigérien Niamey . Lankondé initially acquired the craft self- taught and designed pottery busts of family members. His first publicly exhibited sculpture was in 1969 at the Center culturel américain in Niamey. With a scholarship , he studied from 1974 to 1976 at the art academies École nationale supérieure d'art de Bourges and École supérieure des beaux-arts de Tours in France .

Lankondé became one of Niger's most famous sculptors. He received commissions for sculptures in public spaces in various parts of the country. He specialized in monumental sculptures, often depicting animals and people. He used different materials: wood, stone, bronze, clay and plaster. He named Auguste Rodin as his role model .

Lankondé designed exhibitions at the Center Culturel Franco-Nigérien Niamey and the Center Culturel Franco-Nigérien Zinder, among others . He chaired the sculpture commission for the preparations for the 2005 Francophonie Games and was the jury president for sculpture at the CENSAD Games . He taught art at the Lycée Issa Béri middle school in the Niameyer district of Issa Béri and at the Niameyer College Institut National de la Jeunesse, des Sports et de la Culture . From 2011 he worked as general director of the first Nigerien art school. This was set up in Balleyara , a settlement neighboring his place of birth Winditane.

Issoufou Lankondé had three children. He died in 2014 of complications from an illness.

Works (selection)

Statue of a horse at the entrance to Diffa

Statue of the Virgin Mary at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Niamey

• Statue of a horse, Diffa city ​​entrance
• Bust of Oumarou Ganda , Center Culturel Oumarou Ganda , Niamey
• Bust of Boubou Hama , National Museum of Niger, Niamey
• Flag bearer statue and fountain, Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire, Niamey
• Statues of giraffes, National Museum of Niger, Niamey
• Statues of giraffes, Hôtel de l'Amitié, Tahoua
• Statue of the Virgin Mary, Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help , Niamey
• Sculpture of a cornucopia, former Niger Development Bank, Niamey
• Bust of Captain Issoufou Marafa, Tahoua
• Portrait of Albarka Tchibaou , Tahoua
• Sculpture of a woman from Zarmaganda , Governorate, Tillabéri

Honors

• Officer's Cross of the Palmes Académiques of Niger (2008)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Issoufou Lankondé. La passion pour la sculpture. In: Media Niger. June 15, 2011, accessed October 16, 2019 (French). 
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Issoufou Lankondé. In: PlaneteAfrique. July 9, 2011, accessed October 13, 2019 (French). 
3. ↑ ^{a b c} Samira Sabou: Portrait d'artiste: La sculpture, c'est ma vie ... In: aNiamey.com. August 23, 2013, accessed October 16, 2019 (French). 
4. ↑ ^{a b c d} O. Ali: Décès de Lankondé Issoufou: Le Niger perd un grand maître de la sculpture. In: Niger Diaspora. January 30, 2014, accessed October 16, 2019 (French).