“For All Mankind is a self-explanatory statement referencing the sacrifices women usually make for all of us. As the famous African proverb goes, if you educate a man you educate an individual but if you educate a woman you educate a whole nation.”

—Prince Gyasi

Prince Gyasi (b.1995) creates bold, hyper-colourful images, defined by a sense of optimism, that show and tell the stories of marginalised individuals from his hometown of Accra, the capital of Ghana. Gyasi has synaesthesia, a neurological condition that causes him to associate words and numbers with colours. His unique colour sensibilities are reflected perfectly in 4 A.M (For All Mankind), with sparkling, bubble-gum pinks, stark whites and dramatic, tiger-stripe orange and blacks suffusing this work with an otherworldly quality. ‘I document the culture, with the use of colour to show people the other side of Ghana that people don’t see’, notes the artist.ⁱ In the present work, five, symmetrically arranged women sit on mopeds, clad in matching outfits and sunglasses, defiantly and powerfully confronting the viewer. It conjures up the artist’s childhood memories of waking up early in the morning and seeing most of the women in his neighbourhood already heading to work, whether in the marketplace or at various workshops. Alongside striking colour juxtapositions, Gyasi deploys textural contrasts to augment the aesthetic power of his image; smooth, shiny metal and skin is offset by grooved tires and rough, speckled ground. This sensitivity to composition is a key aspect of his practice, alongside a strong sense of place and community that celebrates Accra, Ghana and Africa more broadly. As he has explained, ‘The reason why I play with colours a lot is because most visual artists tell African stories in a negative way. Even though we’re going through difficulties, I think for the new generation, especially me, I have to tell these stories in a more beautiful way so these kids, when they see them, they know they can be great people in the future because this signifies hope’.ⁱⁱ

Gyasi is the co-founder of the non-profit organisation Boxed Kids, which helps to provide education for children in Jamestown, Accra. The self-taught visual artist has collaborated with numerous high-profile brands, including Apple, OFF-White and Balmain, and his editorial features include a March 2021 cover of Madame Figaro with Naomi Campbell. His work has been exhibited internationally, notably Prince Gyasi: The Truth of Color at Kyotographie International Photography Festival in Kyoto (2022). In 2023, Gyasi was named as one of the ‘Next Generation Leaders’ by TIME and made history as the first Black photographer to shoot the Pirelli Calendar, for its 50^th edition in 2024. Works by the artist have been acquired by the François Pinault Art Foundation and will be included in FEMMES, an upcoming show curated by Pharrell Williams at Perrotin in Paris (March-April 2025).

Prince Gyasi: Next Generation Leaders, TIME, 2023

ⁱ Prince Gyasi, quoted in Ann Catherine Hughes, ‘Prince Gyasi: Boxed Kids’, Musée Magazine, 24 February 2021, online
ⁱⁱ Prince Gyasi, quoted in Victoria L. Valentine, ‘Ghanaian Photographer Prince Gyasi: “I Usually Tell Stories Through My iPhone Lens and With the Use of Color”’, Culture Type, 15 May 2020, online