ABOUT

The unique art collection Légende by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré is an exceptional series of 50 original drawings (13 x 17 cm each) that exemplifies the artist’s signature style—naïve yet deeply symbolic, colorful, and meticulously structured. Created on repurposed cardboard, each work is rendered in ballpoint pen and colored pencil, adhering to Bouabré’s characteristic visual language. The collection forms a cohesive narrative, recounting the allegorical tale of two brothers and the eternal battle between truth and lies. Every drawing is hand-signed on the reverse side and numbered from 1 to 50, ensuring that the sequence is read in the correct order, reinforcing Bouabré’s storytelling intent. This structured approach not only enhances the narrative depth of the series but also reflects his broader mission of using art as a vehicle for knowledge transmission. Légende stands as a testament to Bouabré’s ability to merge art, philosophy, and mythology into a singular, compelling body of work, solidifying his legacy as both a visual artist and a cultural historian.

This collection of thirty drawings unfolds as a vivid visual epic by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, narrating the mythic journey of Lekagnon — a tale of birth, initiation, and return deeply rooted in Bété oral tradition. Executed in Bouabré’s unmistakable style, each small card combines a hand-colored, line-drawn image with surrounding text that frames the story like both caption and incantation. The sequence begins with scenes of gestation and birth, evoking the cosmic and human origins of life, then moves through depictions of everyday customs, forest hunts, spiritual encounters, and moral trials. Along the way, Lekagnon confronts the unknown — from dense wilderness to horned hybrid beings — before emerging transformed and reconciled with his ancestral home. The series captures Bouabré’s unique synthesis of ethnography, philosophy, and storytelling, where the intimate and the universal coexist. With their naïve formalism, luminous colors, and rhythmic script, these drawings transform an oral legend into a timeless written-visual archive of memory and moral reflection.

The piece is titled “Écriture Apogée de l’Humanité” (“Writing: The Apex of Humanity”), dated 16 July 1988 (“Au jour ensoleillé du 16.7.1988”). It forms part of Bouabré’s larger lifelong project, in which he sought to translate universal human knowledge, morality, and spirituality into a visual written language. His works often combine a simple, direct drawing with text carefully framed around the edges—both poetic and documentary in tone. In this image, Bouabré depicts a seated, semi-nude figure holding a yellow tablet or scroll inscribed with mysterious marks—symbols of learning, communication, or revelation. Around the figure float colorful signs, geometric forms, and small motifs (birds, stars, tools, the sun, crosses), representing the diversity of human knowledge and the unity of all creation. The inscription along the border — “Des dessins et des traits des signes” (“Drawings, lines, and signs”) — points to Bouabré’s belief that writing and drawing are the highest forms of human expression, bridges between divine inspiration and earthly understanding. This drawing exemplifies his signature approach: a synthesis of ethnography, mysticism, and humanism. Created after his invention of a Bété syllabary (an alphabet of over 400 signs to record his people’s language), the piece expresses his lifelong quest to make knowledge accessible to all humanity.

The Vinyl Suite is an extraordinary curated collection of 60 original drawings by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, offering a rare glimpse into a unique aspect of the artist’s practice. Unlike his well-known postcard-format artworks, this collection showcases pieces that are approximately twice the size, measuring around 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches). These works were created on the backs of record covers, reflecting Bouabré’s characteristic use of “found” cardboard as his canvas. While the use of repurposed materials was not uncommon in his oeuvre, the larger format of these drawings provides an expanded view of Bouabré’s intricate style and symbolic narratives, amplifying their visual and emotional impact. One of the defining features of The Vinyl Suite is the artist’s decision to sign these works on the front, a departure from his usual practice of signing smaller pieces (11 x 15 cm or 4.3 x 5.9 inches) on the back. This front-facing signature lends a distinctive sense of immediacy and importance to these drawings, highlighting them as significant departures from his more commonly seen format. However, in terms of style and technique, these works remain consistent with Bouabré’s iconic visual language, characterized by meticulously rendered ballpoint pen and colored pencil drawings, often accompanied by explanatory text. Each piece brims with Bouabré’s signature blend of cultural symbolism, spiritual inquiry, and universal themes. Works of this size and format by Bouabré rarely enter the art market, making The Vinyl Suite a particularly exceptional collection. While smaller pieces have fetched record amounts at auctions, including at Sotheby’s New York, these larger works are even more scarce, offering collectors and scholars a rare opportunity to engage with a broader and more impactful interpretation of Bouabré’s artistic vision. The unique provenance and context of these drawings—crafted on the backs of record covers—further emphasize Bouabré’s resourcefulness and his ability to transform everyday materials into profound works of art. The collection stands as a testament to his enduring legacy and the universal resonance of his creations.

Vision Solaire is a pivotal work in Frédéric Bruly Bouabré’s artistic and philosophical journey, marking the moment of his profound spiritual awakening in 1948. Bouabré described this experience as a divine revelation, during which he witnessed the sun transforming into seven distinct colors, an event that profoundly shaped his worldview and artistic output. This vision led him to dedicate his life to the pursuit of knowledge and the documentation of universal truths through art. Vision Solaire not only signifies his personal enlightenment but also serves as a metaphor for his broader mission: illuminating human understanding through symbols, color, and storytelling. This revelation became the foundation of his vast body of work, influencing both his intricate, text-accompanied drawings and his creation of the Bété syllabary, a writing system designed to preserve his people’s linguistic heritage. Vision Solaire encapsulates Bouabré’s belief in the interconnectedness of humanity and the role of art as a medium for transcendent knowledge, cementing his legacy as both a visionary artist and a cultural archivist.

Frédéric Bruly Bouabré’s Bété syllabary is one of his most profound contributions to the preservation and dissemination of cultural knowledge. Designed as a writing system for the Bété language, which had traditionally been transmitted orally, Bouabré’s syllabary consists of over 400 pictograms, each representing a syllabic sound. Inspired by his deep commitment to safeguarding his people’s heritage, Bouabré meticulously developed this alphabet as a tool to document oral traditions, ensuring that the linguistic and cultural identity of the Bété people could endure beyond the pressures of modernization and colonial influence. His pictograms are visually striking, often resembling his artistic style, where simple yet evocative symbols encode meaning in an accessible way. While the Bété syllabary was never widely adopted in daily use, its conceptual significance remains immense, positioning Bouabré as both a linguistic innovator and a cultural guardian. Through this work, he not only sought to empower his own community but also demonstrated a broader vision of language as a bridge between oral tradition and written permanence.

Frédéric Bruly Bouabré’s fixation on polygamy was rooted in both cultural observation and philosophical inquiry, reflecting his broader interest in societal structures and human relationships. In his work, he often depicted polygamy as a fundamental aspect of traditional African life, examining its implications on family dynamics, gender roles, and social harmony. Rather than portraying it through a strictly moral or critical lens, Bouabré approached the subject as an anthropological and symbolic phenomenon, integrating it into his vast exploration of human customs. His depictions of polygamy, like much of his work, were characterized by a blend of naïve artistry and profound narrative depth, reinforcing his commitment to documenting and interpreting cultural traditions for future generations.

2 original drawings on card board (vinyl sleeves), hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches), 1984

3 original drawings on card board (vinyl sleeves), hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches), 1982-84

2 original drawings on card board (vinyl sleeves), hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches), 1983

2 original drawings on card board (vinyl sleeves), hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches), 1983

2 original drawings on card board (vinyl sleeves), hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches), 1981

2 original drawings on card board (vinyl sleeves), hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches), 1984

2 original drawings on card board (vinyl sleeves), hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches), 1986

2 original drawings on card board (vinyl sleeves), hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 21 x 29 cm (8.3 x 11.4 inches), 1982

Frédéric Bruly Bouabré’s vision of La Mère Noire (The Black Mother) was a profound reflection on the origins of humanity and the universal mother figure in African and global consciousness. He viewed La Mère Noire as the symbolic ancestral mother of all people, a concept deeply tied to his belief in Africa as the cradle of civilization. Through his art and writings, Bouabré sought to highlight the maternal figure not just as a source of life but as a guardian of knowledge, wisdom, and cultural continuity. His exploration of this theme was both spiritual and anthropological, reinforcing his broader mission to document and celebrate African heritage within a universal framework.

Titled respectively “Femme, que cuisines-tu??” (“Woman, what are you cooking?”) and “Homme, que bois-tu??” (“Man, what are you drinking?”), the pair forms a diptych—a dialogue between the feminine and masculine principles, rendered with Bouabré’s trademark simplicity, symbolism, and humanist reflection. On the left, the vibrant cooking pot surrounded by fire evokes creation, nourishment, and transformation—symbols of the feminine role as life-giver and sustainer. The colorful palette (yellow, red, green, purple) radiates warmth and energy, suggesting both the literal act of cooking and a metaphorical process of spiritual alchemy or knowledge creation. On the right, the drawing of a vessel and a cup—outlined delicately and left uncolored—represents the masculine act of consumption or contemplation. The minimalism contrasts with the fullness of the female image, implying a complementarity between doing and receiving, substance and reflection, body and mind. Bouabré often used such everyday objects—pots, gourds, cups, tools—as metaphors for cosmic balance and moral inquiry. His question format (“What are you cooking? What are you drinking?”) is not accusatory but philosophical, inviting reflection on human intention, responsibility, and reciprocity. Together, these two works encapsulate Bouabré’s worldview: that wisdom resides in ordinary life, that art and philosophy emerge from the simplest gestures, and that dialogue—between genders, cultures, and ideas—is essential to humanity’s harmony.