Baba Wagué Diakité Online Presentation: No Art Without a Story

Malian artist, storyteller, author, illustrator Baba Wagué Diakité was born into a family of storytellers and artists. With the ground as his earliest chalkboard, Baba Wagué grew in his love of artmaking and ultimately the myriad uses for clay, from the creation of West African mudcloth paintings like the one shown above to richly illustrated story plates and tile murals to large sculptures, always inspired by the world around him and the stories he was told.  Eager to share his passion for art, Baba Wagué can be found year-round surrounded by his students in workshops around the US as well as at his Ko-Falen Cultural Center in Bamako, Mali, and his US home town of Portland, Oregon. 

In his presentation to Montgomery Potters, Baba Wagué will share the manner in which art and clay have shaped his career, his passions, and his outlook on life, as told largely through the intricate artworks he and his students have created over the years.

For more on Baba Wague’s background and accomplishments, please visit his website.