Eric Adjetey Anang ( pronunciation ; born 1985) is a Ghanaian sculptor and fantasy coffin carpenter. He was born in Teshie, Ghana, where he lives and runs the Kane Kwei Carpentry Workshop.

Biography

In 2001, he introduced Ghana design coffins at Gidan Makama Museum Kano, Nigeria, under the auspices of Alliance française in Kano.

After completing his secondary school at Accra Academy, he took over in 2005 the management of the studio that was established by Seth Kane Kwei, motivated by the ambition to “rise the name of his grand-father and see the world”.

2009 marks the beginning of Eric Adjetey Anang’s international career. He was, with his creations, featured in a television commercial for Aquarius (sports drink). and collaborated with the Oregon College of Art & Craft, by organizing a two-month residence in Ghana for artist and Senior Lecturer Michael de Forest.

In January 2010, Anang took part in the photographic project Please, do not move ! with the French photographer Guy Hersant. At the end of the same year, he was invited to the Black World Festival in Dakar as representative of designers from Ghana.

Eric Adjetey Anang is also involved in anthropological research related to Ga people with Roberta Bonetti, an affiliate professor in History of Anthropology at University of Bologna and Fellow at Italian Academy for Advanced Studies, Columbia University.

At the age of 24, Eric Adjetey Anang was acknowledged as “a model for African urban youths” by the French newspaper Le Monde diplomatique.

Within a few years, Eric Adjetey Anang has become, as a coffin maker, one of Ghana’s leading contemporary artists, recognised both locally and internationally. The role of both families ordering coffins for their relatives and some travel agencies which include the visit of his workshop in their packages played a critical role in the local recognition of his talent, and helped to attract interest of cultural institutions established in Ghana.

Exhibitions, other events and press

2015

• The workshop is selected as one of the two places to discover in Africa on the occasion of Obscura Day 2015.
• The Danish Association for Life and Death, one of the older NGOs in the country, has acquired a coffin from the workshop for its permanent collection.

2014

• (German) Short film for Abenteuer Leben, a programme of German TV channel Kabel eins
• Welcomes Laure Koroma-Le Bras, student of Ensci of Paris for a four months residency at the workshop.
• Lecture at the MFA AC+D Studio, Portland, Oregon – USA
• One week residency at the Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa – USA.
• alTURNatives group exhibition at the Center for Art in Wood, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – USA.
• One week residency at the College of Liberal Arts, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire – USA.
• Two months residency at the Centre for Art in Wood, Philadelphia, USA.
• The Bic company, in its annual report, features the work of Eric Adjetey Anang among seven international artists.
• Article in Kenyan newspaper Business Daily.
• (Russian) Twenty coffins ordered for the death museum in Moscow, owned by Alexander Donskoy.

2013

• (French) Introduction of Eric Adjetey Anang’s work for French primary and secondary schools. Cyril Bourgeois, Le corps et l’oeuvre. In Arts visuels et corps humain. Page 22. CRDP of Académie de Besançon, France. ISBN 978-2-84093-230-7
• (English)(Japanese) The Fantasy Coffins of Kane Kwei: article about Eric Adjetey Anang’s work by Valentin Triponez in Death Zine, an artist’s book of Momongabox launched at the Tokyo Art Bookfair 2013.
• A coffin in the shape of a tilapia fish is displayed at the Goethe Institute in Accra for the launching of Funeral Fashion in Ghana, art book by Prof Irene Odetei and Lisa Meier.
• Abebuu adekai, coffins like nowhere else: exhibition at the Alliance française Accra, first solo show of a coffin artist in Ghana with a screening of The Master of Coffins by Luis Nachbin.
• Pecha Kucha presentation in Aalborg, Denmark.
• Occupy Utopia: Twenty four coffins made in Ghana for Images Festival, and two more in Denmark in collaboration with street artist Lars Pank.
• (Danish) Article in the Danish newspaper Politiken.
• Article in the Canadian newspaper Globe and Mail.
• (Greek) Article in Metro International Greece.
• Invited at the Milan Design Week for the Afrofuture project.
• Going in Style – Interview on CBS News Sunday Morning by Seth Doane, first US broadcasting on March 17, 2013
• The Master of Coffins – 26 minutes documentary by Luis Nachbin / Matrioska Filmes for GloboTV (Brasil)

2012

• Eric Adjetey Anang was invited by French artist Klaus Guingand to represent Ghana for Art Warning the World project. He created an original piece for this project involving 200 artists from 200 different countries or communities.
• Article on the site of German radio Domradio (de)
• Article Daily Mail on line.
• Live telephone interview by Jay Thomas aired on Sirius Satellite Radio.
• Let’s celebrate funerals with our best smile! fiction-documentary movie in Japanese, with Adjetey Anang and Rieko Saibara. 60 minutes. TVMAN UNION / NHK, broadcast on NHK BS Premium.
• Order of a personalised coffin by Rieko Saibara, Japanese manga artist.

2011

• The two coffins created in the Museum of World Funerary Art of Novosibirsk are presented within the Necropolis exhibition in Moscow
• Going out in style, short documentary movie on Eric’s work by British director Zoe Elliott-Shircore.
• Invited as a resident artist by the Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, Oregon
• Invited to the Gwangju Design Biennale (South Korea), curated by Brendan McGetrick and An Xiao Mina. Artistic directors: Ai Wei Wei and Seung H-Sang
• Two months residence at Kane Kwei Carpentry Workshop for designer Benjamin Rollins Caldwell of South Carolina
• Invited for a three weeks residence at Museum of World Funerary Art, Novosibirsk
• Article in Mondomix magazine (p. 39) and on Mondomix website
• Article on Belgium website Belgacom Skynet
• installation of a coffin in the Shreyas and Mina Ajmera Gallery of Africa, the Americas and Asia-Pacific of the Royal Ontario Museum on the occasion of the International Museum Day.

2010

• Represents Ghana for the design section of the Black World Festival in Dakar.
• Short programme on CNN International Edition and CNN programme “Inside Africa”
• Article in Canadian magazine Spezzatino
• Article on France 24
• Public order: a food shop, by the Department of archaeology, University of Ghana in Legon, for the Pitt Rivers Museum, University of Oxford.
• 26 minutes programme on Eric Adjetey Anang recorded and broadcast on GBN-GTV, Ghanaian national TV station.
• Article in Austrian newspaper Die Presse

2009

• ‘Colourfull into Darkness’. 9 Fantasy Coffins of the Kane Kwei Carpentry Workshop exposed in the Designcenter De Winkelhaak, the Central Station & the Permeke Public Library Antwerpen, Belgium. 22.8 – 10.9.2009. Organised by La Piscine d’Activité npo. Boulevard Amandla 2009. After the exhibition, the 9 coffins became part of the permanent collection of the Verbeke Foundation, Kemzeke, Belgium.
• Public Order – one coffin for the permanent collection of Royal Ontario Museum. Ontario, Canada.
• Welcomes Michael Deforest, senior lecturer at the Oregon College of Art and Craft for a two months residency at the studio.
• Ghana: Customised coffins– Documentary film of 52 minutes. Directed by Philippe Lespinasse. FTV Pole TV5 / Wide Angle Productions, France.
• TV programme, 26 minutes on the workshop. El Mondo TV. Madrid, Spain.
• Guest artist of Boulevard Amandla project in Antwerp (Belgium).
• Radio show devoted to the workshop and the poet Nii Aye Ghanaian living in London. Radio Central, Antwerp, Belgium.
• Private order of eight coffins – Private Collector. Los Angeles, CA, USA.

2008

• Moment with Mo Abudu – Emission TV of one hour on the production of the workshop. Studio M-Net TV. Lagos, Nigeria.
• Order two coffins. Private Collector, Netherlands.
• Interview with Eric Anang Adjetey. Arte Television, Germany.

• “Synthetic – ENSCI, Robotique Industrielle, 2012”. synthetic-lab.net. 
• “Going out in style”. YouTube. 2013-03-24. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “The Master of Coffins”. YouTube. 2013-02-06. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “Luis Nachbin”. Matrioskafilmes.com.br. 2009-07-06. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “Im Fischbauch unter die Erde” (in German). domradio.de. 2012-11-10. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• Shari Miller (2012-08-14). “This really is the last nail in the coffin: The casket that looks like a hammer and the other bizarre boxes for the dead | Mail Online”. Dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “Going out in Style”. YouTube. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “One month residence at OCAC”. Ocaclibrary.wordpress.com. 2011-10-31. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “(재)광주비엔날레”. Gb.or.kr. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
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• “Article in New-York Times”. Nytimes.com. 2011-08-29. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• BRC Designs, Benjamin Rollins Caldwell, BRC, Modern Studio Furniture, Studio Furniture, Unique furniture, eclectic, whimsy, whimsical, BRC Design. “BRC Designs – Blog”. brcdesigns.com.  CS1 maint: Uses authors parameter (link)
• Ваше имя*. “В Россию приедет всемирно известный мастер производства “веселых гробов” Эрик Ананг из Ганы”. Funeralportal.ru. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• blogkislorod.ru. “В Новосибирск приедет мастер самых веселых и необычных гробов в мире БЛОГ КИСЛОРОД”. Blogkislorod.ru. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
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• “Новости Новосибирска и области сегодня – Деловой квартал в Новосибирске. Новости Новосибирска: последние новости дня – Деловой квартал”. dkvartal.ru. 
• “Фотогалерея: В Новосибирск приедет мастер, делающий “веселые гробы” – Новости Mail.Ru”. Новости Mail.Ru. 
• “В Новосибирск приедет мастер, делающий “веселые гробы”. Фото – Общество – Новости – СибКрай.ru”. Sibkray.ru. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “Новости Mail.Ru: Последние новости России и мира”. Новости Mail.Ru. 
• “В Новосибирске ждут мастера по производству “весёлых гробов” – Новости – Любимый город (Новосибирск)”. 1nsk.ru. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “В Новосибирск едет “веселый” гробовщик”. sibnet.ru. 
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• “Funérailles au Ghana : des cercueils fantaisie au son des tambours”. mondomix. 2011-04-25. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “Aventure et voyages”. Skynet.be. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
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• “L’artiste ghanéen Eric Anang expose ses cercueils de fantaisie à Dakar”. panapress.com. 
• “Video – Breaking News Videos from”. CNN.com. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• Catriona Davies for CNN. “Ghana’s incredible coffins: Fish, bananas and buses – CNN.com”. Edition.cnn.com. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “Download Volume 11: Chocolate”. Spezzatino. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “Passing away in style: Ghana’s funky burial coffins | The Observers”. Observers.france24.com. 2004-05-24. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• “Ghana: Exportschlager Kreativsarg «”. Diepresse.com. 2010-03-31. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• Michael deForest. “Apprentice Coffin Maker”. michaeldeforeststudio.blogspot.com. 
• “introduction of Ghana: sépultures sur mesure”. Africultures.com. Retrieved 2013-03-29. 
• AP (2009-09-03). “Ap: Amandla”. Andreaspeeters.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2013-03-29.