The first chapter of a three-part collaboration between Amoako Boafo and DeRoche Projects, where painting meets spatial language

Photography (c) Julien Lanoo : www.julienlanoo.com

At Gagosian Mayfair in London, I Do Not Come to You By Chance marks Ghanaian artist Amoako Boafo’s first solo exhibition in the city. The exhibition was spatially designed by architect Glenn DeRoche of DeRoche Projects, continuing a series of collaborations with Boafo that includes the writers’ and curators’ residency dot.ateliers｜Ogbojo in Accra and the Volta Pavilion, constructed using reclaimed timber from Ghana’s Volta Region.Approaching the exhibition as a “mode of translation,” DeRoche reinterprets the communal and cultural context underpinning Boafo’s work into spatial form. Two architectural interventions anchor the exhibition: Courtyard Pavilion in Gallery 1 and Nkyinkyim in Gallery 2. Both spaces treat architecture not as a neutral backdrop but as a medium that amplifies the themes found in Boafo’s portraiture—strength, resilience, and collective identity.

Gallery 1 – Awulai Ashia: Memory of a Courtyard

In Gallery 1, DeRoche reimagines the courtyard from Boafo’s childhood home in Accra, Ghana—not as a literal reconstruction, but as a distilled memory shaped by West African architectural and ancestral traditions. In Ghanaian domestic life, courtyards are vital centers of gathering, care, and exchange. For Boafo, this was a formative space of community and creativity. The Courtyard Pavilion is constructed from charred Accoya timber, creating a meditative space rich in scent and texture. Paintings are installed within niches framed by the structure, forming a contemplative “gallery within a gallery.” For the first time in Gagosian Mayfair’s history, all windows have been opened to the street—dissolving boundaries and extending the spirit of the courtyard beyond the white cube. The exhibition invites the public into a space rooted in openness and shared presence.

Gallery 2 – Nkyinkyim: A Social Sculpture in Symbolic Form

In Gallery 2, Boafo presents his first freestanding, double-sided painting, embedded within a sculptural framework designed by DeRoche. The installation is titled Nkyinkyim, referencing an Adinkra symbol from Ghana that represents life’s twists and the resilience required to navigate them.　The paintings are mounted to a central spine made from the same charred timber as the courtyard. Panels stagger outwards in rhythm, reflecting the curved structure of the Nkyinkyim symbol and framing each portrait spatially. Woven rattan panels at both ends reference traditional Ghanaian fishing baskets, connecting the piece to Boafo’s coastal upbringing. A table and four chairs—covered in a custom fabric created with Boafo’s paper transfer technique—complete the piece, offering a site for reflection and gathering. More than functional, these elements embody the exhibition’s core message: that community is a structure of support and shared meaning.

First Chapter in a Three-Part Series

I Do Not Come to You By Chance marks the second collaboration between Amoako Boafo and DeRoche Projects through a unified art-architectural language. It is also the first installment in a planned three-part series with upcoming exhibitions in LA and Accra. Currently on view, Amoako Boafo: I Have Been Here Before is a new exhibition project between the artist and an architect, opening on July 20, 2025, at the Wooyang Art Museum in South Korea. It marks Boafo’s first institutional solo exhibition in Asia.