I see painting as a space where the human figure can speak freely—not as an idealized form, but as a reflection of our vulnerabilities, tensions, and desires. Through distortion, simplification, and a sculptural approach to paint, I aim to make visible the emotional truths that often hide beneath the surface. My work is not about shock, but honesty; it is in imperfection and imbalance that the most authentic expressions emerge.
Isshaq Ismail (born 1989, Accra, Ghana) is a visual artist who lives and works in Accra. He studied painting at the Ghanatta College of Art and Design, Accra, graduating in 2012.
Ismail is known for his distinctive approach to figurative painting, which he describes as “infantile semi-abstraction.” His work combines bold impasto, gestural line, and a vibrant yet controlled color palette, producing figures that are playful, unsettling, and psychologically charged. Working primarily with acrylic on canvas, he approaches painting with a sculptural sensibility, treating paint as a malleable material rather than a purely visual one.
Through distortion and simplification of the human face and body, Ismail explores themes of identity, vulnerability, and social pressure in contemporary life. His engagement with the grotesque is not provocative for its own sake, but a means of emotional honesty that resists idealized beauty.
Ismail has exhibited widely across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and the United States. Notable solo exhibitions include Beyond The Fence Begins The Sky (Efie Gallery, Dubai, 2023), Allure (HDM Gallery, Beijing, 2022), Beauty Behind the Madness (Gallery 1957, Accra, 2022), and Layers (Nicholas Roman Fine Art, New York, 2018). His work has been included in major group exhibitions at Kunsthal KAdE Museum, Kunsthal Rotterdam, Christie’s, Ross-Sutton Gallery, Maddox Gallery, and the African Artists’ Foundation.
He has participated in leading international art fairs, including Art Basel Hong Kong, Art Dubai, Art Cologne, 1-54 London, and Art Genève. Ismail has been shortlisted for the Barclays L’Atelier Art Competition and the Kuenyehia Art Prize, and his work has been featured in publications such as ArtNews, Artsy, Christie’s, and StirWorld. His works are held in private collections worldwide.