The African marketplace for art

Aworanka was born as a platform to educate and provide access to information and artworks produced in Africa or in the diaspora. Every month Aworanka partners with new galleries offering a diverse mix of artworks and artists in the fields of painting, sculpture, works on paper, and photography. All of these artworks are inspired by Africa, created in the continent and/or made by African artists.

Besides trading African artworks, Aworanka is particularly focused on cultivating knowledge. Our main objective is to organize and give universal access to information that before was segregated and was arduous to find. Aworanka is for art lovers, scholars, collectors, and investors to discover, study, and acquire African art.

With this objective of promoting and facilitating the acquisition of African art we also offer an art advisory service and customized packages for businesses or professionals.

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From West Africa to the world

Aworanka as a platform was born in Nigeria in 2020 and its name was formulated using two different words from West African languages.

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AWORA

Aworan means art in the Yoruba language. The Yoruba people are an ethnic group that populates western Africa mainly Nigeria, Togo, Benin, and part of Ghana. This is one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa with around 40 million individuals in and around West Africa.

The Yoruba are said to be among the most accomplished and fecund craftsmen and sculptors in Africa. Besides blacksmithing, glassmaking, weaving, carving, or working leather, the Yoruba became famous for their terra cotta works made in the 12th and 14th centuries and their bronze casting in the 13th and 14th centuries. In this era, their lost-wax method of bronze casting reached a level of sophistication and technical excellence never equaled in Western Africa afterward.

NKA

Nka means art in the Igbo language. The Igbo people are an ethnic group that inhabits Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea but large Igbo populations are also found in Cameroon and Gabon as well as outside Africa.

Ibgo art is well-known for its masks, masquerades, and outfits representing people, animals, or non-figurative ideas.

The curvilinear designs drawn by the Igbo people, typically irregular and frequently designed spontaneously are called Uli. Uli comes from the Igbo name of the plants processed to create the dye of the Uli designs. These designs are popularly used to decorate the body or to create wall murals.

Our partner galleries

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Aworanka has partnered with the best galleries in Africa. All our galleries are officially registered and have their own profile page on our website with their history and achievements as well as the biographies of some of their artists and lists of past exhibitions, biennials, or cultural events. Feel free to explore them here.

If you are an African-based gallery or if you represent a large number of African artists you can join Aworanka’s community and sell your artworks to hundreds of collectors around the world. Aworanka will help you grow your online reach and boost your sales. For more information on how to join Aworanka please go here.

Leading-edge technology

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For our buyers' peace of mind, Aworanka verifies every artwork purchased in the platform looking at the authenticity and conditions of the piece before it is shipped to the customer. Besides, Aworanka has partnered with Tagsmart. With every purchase over $500, the buyer receives a third party certificate and a free account with Tagsmart. Purchases under $500 include a certificate of authenticity issued by the gallery.

Aworanka also guarantees a transparent and secure payment method and has reached an agreement by which all prices shown on Aworanka are the same as those offered in the galleries.

You can learn more about Aworanka’s processes and payment methods here.

Why buy on Aworanka?

Your love for the arts makes a difference to us, our galleries, and our African artists. Aworanka’s objective is to be able to transform the African art world by promoting emerging African artists and supporting art educational programs and initiatives.