PHILIP LETSU KOMLA
Philip Letsu Komla (b. 1987, Ghana) is a Ghanaian contemporary artist whose practice has gained international attention for its distinctive use of color and its nuanced engagement with identity, memory, and everyday life. Educated at the Ghanatta College of Art and Design, he developed a strong technical and conceptual foundation that continues to inform his work.
Komla’s paintings are characterized by expressive surfaces, layered compositions, and a vivid chromatic language that bridges personal experience with broader social narratives. Drawing from his cultural environment, his work reflects on transformation, resilience, and the complexity of contemporary African life, positioning local perspectives within a global visual discourse.
Through a practice that balances figuration and abstraction, Komla creates works that are both emotionally resonant and visually compelling. He lives and works in Ghana, where he continues to develop a confident and internationally oriented artistic language.
BIOGRAPHY
Exhibitions
2026
- MEVE Gallery (Solo Exhibiton)
2025
- Modern Art Gallery (Group/Featured Exhibitions)
- Mash Gallery Los Angeles (Solo Exhibition)
2024
- Modern Art Gallery (Group/Featured Exhibitions)
- Gallery Los Angeles (Group/Featured Exhibitions)
2023
- Solo Exhibition, Mash Gallery, Los Angeles, USA
- Solo Exhibition, Arushi Gallery, Los Angeles, USA
- Exhibition, Jane Advisory, London, UK
2022
- BERMEL VON LUXBOURG, Berlin, Germany
2021
- CHILLI ART PROJECT, London, UK
Philip Letsu Komla (b. 1987, Ghana) is widely regarded as one of the significant contemporary artists emerging from Ghana today. His practice, rooted in painting, engages deeply with questions of identity, memory, and lived experience, positioning his work at the intersection of personal narrative and broader cultural discourse.
Komla received his formal artistic training at the Ghanatta College of Art and Design, where he developed a strong technical foundation alongside a critical awareness of material, composition, and visual storytelling. This education provided the basis for a practice that is both disciplined and intuitive, allowing him to navigate freely between figuration and abstraction.
His works are distinguished by expressive surfaces, layered compositions, and a bold chromatic language. Color plays a central role in Komla’s practice, functioning as both an emotional and structural element. Through vivid palettes and dynamic mark-making, his paintings convey intensity, movement, and psychological depth, while remaining firmly grounded in everyday realities.
Drawing from his immediate environment as well as collective memory, Komla addresses themes such as transformation, resilience, community, and self-definition. His imagery reflects the complexities of contemporary Ghanaian life, yet transcends local specificity by engaging with universal human concerns. In this way, his work contributes to an expanded understanding of contemporary African art within a global context.
Materiality and process are integral to Komla’s approach. He often builds his compositions through layering and reworking, allowing traces of gesture and revision to remain visible. This openness of process reinforces the sense of time, memory, and continuity that underpins his work.
Through a practice that combines cultural rootedness with international awareness, Philip Letsu Komla has established a confident and recognizable artistic voice. His work resonates with collectors, curators, and institutions seeking contemporary perspectives that are both authentic and globally relevant.
Philip Letsu Komla lives and works in Ghana, where he continues to develop a body of work that affirms his position as one of the important figures within Ghana’s contemporary art landscape and an increasingly visible presence on the international stage.