KOUMY – A Splash of Colours in the Heart of Lomé

The home of Togolese artist Koumy is proof that one can live content and in perfect harmony with nature in small spaces. Koumy’s home is a real oasis in a dry, brown city; a festival of colours in the middle of the dust and concrete that we are so accustomed to in many African cities.

After spending some time in Belgium where he honed his skills and started getting serious attention in major art circles with his neo-contemporary pieces, Koumy decided to return to Lomé, Togo, to share his craft with Africans. He believed strongly that African artists have a duty to make their work more accessible to Africans. He knows many top figures in African politics and social life, but his passion is sharing his craft and big heart with the world.

Koumy’s home sits on a 20 square metre plot of land in the heart of Lomé. The external view of the home already bears witness to what he has done to give back to his community. On one side of the street, he has installed public benches covered in art. On the other side, there is a long mural of ceramic cuttings depicting different qualities like love, togetherness and collaboration. The giant blue heart at the entrance to his home leaves no one in doubt as to the fact that he wants to share this labour of love with the entire world.

Once inside the compound itself, your jaws drop at the sheer volume of beauty that you are surrounded with. Visitors are immersed into a three hundred and sixty degree creation that must have taken ages to make.

The immaculate, well-kept gardens create a microclimate that is cooler than the rest of the city. Hidden on one side, is two sculptures of male and female thinkers after Rodin’s style, topped with red hearts. Koumy seems to do everything: sculpture (cement, acrylic), carving, painting, gardening…

Follow the path and you soon come to what is probably the most beautiful swimming pool area you have ever seen. Calm, relaxing, and covered in wall-to-wall painting of breadthtaking quality.

The rest of the house is similarly decorated in pop art, neo-contemporary, neo expressionist, gouache and graffiti-inspired pieces. This entire house that looks and feels like a museum. The refrigerator, the tables, the chairs, the wallpaper, the sculptures…there is art of exceptional quality crammed into every possible corner that the eyes fall on, done by Koumy himself.

The quality of his work speaks for itself and Koumy’s art has travelled far and wide. His pieces are in the Togolese presidency, in various hotels, public spaces and in the homes of major public figures around West Africa and beyond.

On any given day, his little paradise receives guests from all over the world, from local neighbours to ambassadors, ministers, artists and students too.

Koumy’s life work is testament to the fact that you can shine bright like the stars wherever you are and you do not need flashy cars, flashy technology, or even eighteen-bedroom mansions to feel happy or to be fulfilled. It tells you that you do not need to destroy nature to be happy. Rather, you can shape your existence around nature, help it to grow eve, and become one with it.

It is also a call to Africans that they can succeed wherever they are. All you need is a big heart, sagacity and patience. Koumy’s example is very important for Togo because it sits on the southern border of the Sahel. Many young people feel disaffected in these parts and that pushes them to try to cross the Sahara into North Africa and Europe for a better life. By coming back, Koumy wants to show that African art can help Africans live a good, fulfilled life.

All who come to this wonderland leave Koumyfied!

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