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☆ Presidential portraits: Kehinde Wiley’s secret, decade-long project painting African leaders
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Thomas Page | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Perhaps not, supposes Kehinde Wiley in his latest collection, “A Maze of Power,” which, in the artist’s own indelible style, casts plenty of light of its own. We’re now learning that before and after that commission, he had been on a secret, decade-long odyssey across the African continent, painting its current and former heads of state. This series narrows the gap further, with subjects commanding a similar power to some of Wiley’s artistic reference points. Tanguy Beurdeley/© Courtesy Kehinde Wiley and Galerie TemplonHery Rajaonarimampianina, the former president of Madagascar, sits astride a horse in one painting. Some might wrinkle their nose at seeing certain heads or former heads of state depicted in such triumphant fashion.

Persons: Kehinde Wiley, Wiley, Barack Obama, We’re, Jacques Chirac, Obama, Sarah Ligner, Black, Old, Olusegun Obasanjo, Paul Kagame, Tanguy, Hery Rajaonarimampianina, Alpha Condé, –, ”, Rajaonarimampianina –, “, “ it’s, Andy Warhol’s, Mao Organizations: CNN, Old Masters, Democratic, Wiley Locations: Africa, Zimbabwe, Rhodesia, Los Angeles, Senegal, Nigeria, New York, Paris, France, Rwanda, Madagascar, Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, Guinea, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Togo, Democratic Republic of Congo

☆ Guinea junta leader denounces Western democracy amid wave of coups
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Guinea's President Mamadi Doumbouya addresses the 78th Session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York City, U.S., September 21, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid Acquire Licensing RightsDAKAR, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Guinea's military leader Mamady Doumbouya told the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday that the Western model of democracy does not work for Africa, as evidenced by a recent wave of coups. Doumbouya took power in a coup in 2021, which was one of eight in West and Central Africa in the last three years. The coups have been strongly condemned by the United Nations and Western powers such as the U.S. and France, which have urged democracy to be restored as soon as possible. Doumbouya took power by overthrowing Alpha Conde, Guinea's then 84-year-old president who had changed the constitution to run for a third term, sparking widespread protests.

Persons: Mamadi Doumbouya, Brendan McDermid, Mamady Doumbouya, Doumbouya, Alpha Conde, Guinea's, Bate Felix, Nellie Peyton, Alex Richardson Organizations: General Assembly, REUTERS, Rights, General, United Nations, ECOWAS, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Africa, West, Central Africa, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, Gabon, France, New York, Russia

☆ Recent coups in West and Central Africa
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

BURKINA FASOIn January 2022, Burkina Faso's army ousted President Roch Kabore, blaming him for failing to contain violence by Islamist militants. Doumbouya became interim president and promised a transition to democratic elections within three years. CHADIn April 2021, Chad's army took power after President Idriss Deby was killed on the battlefield while visiting troops fighting rebels in the north. Deby's son, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, was named interim president and tasked with overseeing an 18-month transition to elections. But the coup leaders clashed with the interim president, retired colonel Bah Ndaw, and engineered a second coup in May 2021.

Persons: Gerauds Wilfried Obangome, Ali Bongo, Mohamed Bazoum, Abdourahamane Tiani, Burkina Faso's, Roch Kabore, Colonel Paul, Henri Damiba, Captain Ibrahim Traore, Mamady Doumbouya, Alpha Conde, Conde, Doumbouya, Idriss Deby, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, Assimi Goita, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, Bah Ndaw, Goita, Hereward Organizations: REUTERS, Islamic, West, ECOWAS, Chadian, Mali's West, Thomson Locations: Libreville, Gabon, West, Central Africa, NIGER, Niger, al Qaeda, Islamic State, Mali, Burkina, BURKINA FASO, GUINEA, CHAD, N'Djamena, MALI

BURKINA FASOBurkina Faso's army ousted President Roch Kabore in January 2022, blaming him for failing to contain violence by Islamist militants. MALIA group of Malian colonels led by Assimi Goita ousted President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita in August 2020. But the coup leaders clashed with the interim president, retired colonel Bah Ndaw, and engineered a second coup in May 2021. Deby's son, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, was named interim president and tasked with overseeing an 18-month transition to elections. GUINEASpecial forces commander Colonel Mamady Doumbouya ousted President Alpha Conde in September 2021.

Persons: Mohamed Bazoum, Roch Kabore, Colonel Paul, Henri Damiba, Captain Ibrahim Traore, Assimi Goita, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, Bah Ndaw, Goita, CHAD Chad's, Idriss Deby, General Mahamat Idriss Deby, Mamady Doumbouya, Alpha Conde, Conde, Doumbouya, Bate Felix, Nick Macfie Organizations: Economic, West African States, ECOWAS, African, BURKINA FASO Burkina Faso's, Mali's West, Chadian, GUINEA Special, Thomson Locations: DAKAR, Niamey, African Union, West, Central Africa, BURKINA FASO, MALI, Mali, N'Djamena, GUINEA

☆ Why a coup in Guinea was felt around the world
▼ + stars: | 2021-12-16 | by ( Timothyna Afua Duncan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A coup that took place in a coastal country in West Africa may hit closer to home than you think — with smartphones and power lines potentially being affected. These items all contain aluminum, and the world's primary source of aluminum is bauxite ore. And Guinea, the country where this coup occurred, has the world's largest bauxite reserves. Soldiers from the country's special forces had ousted President Alpha Conde, citing corruption as their motivation. In the process, the coup disrupted nearly a decade of political stability in the mineral-rich nation. Watch the video above to find out why a coup in Guinea was felt around the world, and what this latest blow means for consumers and businesses around the world.

Persons: Alpha Conde Organizations: London Metal Exchange, Markets Locations: West Africa, Guinea, Conakry

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