Born in 1988 in Sikasso, Moussa Traoré graduated from the National Institute of Art (INA) and the Conservatory of Multimedia Arts and Crafts (CAMM) in Bamako. Upon graduation, Moussa TRAORE developed his research alongside the artists of L’Atelier Badialan 1.

Moussa’s work is often based on the mystical side of a human being. Born into a Bambara family, he was immersed in ancestral rites from an early age. It examines the relationship between man and nature. He observes the dark side, the animal side which manifests itself when the forces of nature prevail over man. ‘At this moment the duality of man becomes visible. Man acts like an animal. His instinct dominates. He shows his aggressiveness, his power and his helplessness’.

Moussa criticizes today’s world for being too influenced by capitalism. ‘It’s the disappearance of our rules and our principles.’ This ‘fake’ world is in stark contrast to the mainstream society in which he grew up. His works depict the vain search for harmony between man and his environment, sharing and communication. His work often seems a little aggressive. He doesn’t bring out his characters as people; He always makes a resemblance between man and his animal side. The dividing line between man and his animal side is very thin.

Contradictions like modernity and traditions, spirituality versus the laws of nature, ratio versus intuition are a common thread in his work. ‘I try to show this duality as every person has a negative and a positive side. The man with his animal side. The hair as a symbol of energy and spiritual power. I paint the resemblance between ‘man and animal’.