La Légende de Néhï et TchéTché

La Légende de Néhï et TchéTché is a unique narrative series by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré consisting of 32 original drawings, each measuring approximately 13 x 17 cm. Executed in Bouabré’s unmistakable style—naïve yet highly structured, combining image and handwritten text within a carefully framed composition—the series functions as a visual tale in sequential form. Like many of Bouabré’s works, the drawings operate simultaneously as images and as pages of a book, forming a didactic narrative rooted in folklore, morality, and everyday life. The story begins by introducing the couple Néhï and TchéTché and situates them within the Bété world, presenting scenes of village life, agriculture, animals, talismans, and daily labor. These early images establish a symbolic universe in which human life, nature, spirituality, and survival are closely interconnected. Bouabré uses simple figures, plants, tools, and animals not merely as illustrations of rural life, but as moral symbols that gradually build the foundation of the story.

As the narrative develops, the story focuses on the couple’s desire for a child and the challenges they face. The later drawings show the woman making a wish, becoming pregnant, and eventually giving birth under unusual and symbolic circumstances. The child that is born is not ordinary and undergoes a transformation, suggesting that the story moves from a simple tale of family life into the realm of myth and moral allegory. The final drawings of the series present the philosophical conclusion of the legend, written by Bouabré himself: “La légende de Néhï et TchéTché nous enseigne que l’invincibilité peut être vaincue par une force beaucoup plus importante. Ainsi dire, nul n’est assez fort.” Through this conclusion, Bouabré frames the entire story as a moral lesson about strength, humility, and the limits of human power. The series is therefore not only a narrative work but also a philosophical one, demonstrating Bouabré’s lifelong mission to transmit knowledge, wisdom, and ethical reflection through drawing and storytelling.

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La Légende de Néhï et TchéTché, 32 original drawings on cardboard, hand signed by Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, 2005