Born in 1922 in Teshie, Ghana.
Died in 1992, Teshie.
Aged eight, Kane Kwei left Teshie for Asamankese, one of the farms of his clan. In Ga language, "Kane" means light. He returned there aged fourteen and settled with his eldest brother, Kane Adjetei who taught him carpentry for 6 years. Kane Kwei showed little interest in furniture making or roofing, but showed great talent for wood carving that he practiced for pleasure with a minimum of tools. In 1937, Kane Kwei undertook the journey, that meant the end of his training. He worked for some ten years in the Ashanti forests, in the center of the country, where he got to know the different kinds of woods and their characteristics. In 1951 Kane Kwei opened his workshop in the old part of Teshie. He built a first coffin, in the shape of a dugout, for one of his uncles, a fisherman who owned a whole flotilla of them. He dedicated himself from then on to this new funerary art and worked, secluded, almost exclusively for the elders of his clan. The second coffin was a Mercedes car. The day of the funeral, it was paraded throughout the city and was a huge success. Kane Kwei started reproducing the symbols of earthly success and social status that the Ga asked him for. Since then, the wealthiest families have buried their dead in coffins of the most varied shapes. These coffins honor the dead, and show their achievements and those of their clan. Huge sums of money are spent on them. These extravagant coffins are chosen by the deceased's family, most often according to their social background or their profession. A lion for a traditional chieftain, a Mercedes for the boss of a fleet of taxis. Carving hens, onions, houses, shoes, tools, he constantly improved his technique as a sculptor and painter, and turned out works that were realistic, colorful and highly skilled. Over the last twenty years, his sculptures, very popular in Ghana, have made a special and original contribution to the tradition of funerary cults in Western Africa. ~caacart.com
Kwei is a carpenter in Ghana who creates fantasy coffins for human burial. His work borders on kitsch, justifiable for an outsider artist. I suppose clients order these shapes for their funerals.
These are spiritual objects in the sense that they actively negate the normal spiritual constructs of funerary rites and rituals by making these traditionally sacred objects highly commercial. Interestingly, these objects are much more personal than a standard coffin; they express the interests and personalities of the departed.
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