The Narrative of Migration and Matter
Extending from his monumental work The Pillar of the Missing Migrants exhibited at the Louvre in 2022, Toguo returns to the recurring motif of the bundle: a symbol through which he examines the fragile entanglement between people and the things they carry when forced to move. The vividly wrapped forms, enveloped in layers of patterned fabric, hold the traces of those in transit: weight, scent, warmth, memory, separation, and hope. Through these humble objects, Toguo constructs a visual ritual of remembrance and resilience. What once served as the means of survival becomes a monument of collective endurance, transforming the ordinary into containers of shared memory, witnesses to humanity’s continuous journey between displacement and renewal.
The Breath on Paper
Toguo’s works on paper unfold like an extended act of breathing. For him, ink and watercolor are not techniques for representing the external world, but a portable language, a diary that moves between journey and contemplation. They record moments of drifting, encounter, observation, and reflection across different lands. On these sheets, human, animal, and vegetal forms intertwine and merge, forming an open system of growth without boundaries. The fluidity of water keeps these figures in a constant state of becoming, where the distinctions between body and earth, pain and tenderness, gradually dissolve. The lightness and transparency revealed through the dilution and diffusion of the material embody the essence of existence itself, which shows resilience within fragility, and finding order amid uncertainty.
Falling Leaves
In the exhibition, the falling leaf symbolizes a return after dispersal and a rebirth through descent. For Toguo, migration is not merely a geographic displacement but a cyclical state of being: like leaves, humans drift, take root, and regenerate within the gaps of time and space. Within the vivid fabrics, viewers can sense the warmth of those in transit and the quiet breath of the earth. In Leaves Fall to Earth, Toguo’s works unfold in two rhythms of breathing, one drawn from the weight of the body, the other from the fluidity of identity. Together, they form a poetic meditation on life: growing through wandering, finding belonging in descent, and rediscovering the world anew with every breath.
About the Artist
Barthélémy Toguo (b. 1967, Cameroon) lives and works between Paris and Bandjoun. His multidisciplinary practice spans painting, sculpture, photography, performance, and installation, distinguished by its vibrant use of color and deeply empathetic visual language. Through his work, Toguo addresses themes of migration, identity, and global circulation. As a social activist, he founded Bandjoun Station, a contemporary art centre in Cameroon in 2008, dedicated to fostering art education and intercultural dialogue across Africa and beyond. His works have been exhibited and collected by major institutions such as the Louvre, Centre Pompidou, Tate Modern, Foundation Louis Vuitton, and the Venice Biennale. Toguo has been awarded the French Order of Arts and Letters for his contributions to art and culture. His practice combines powerful visual intensity with profound human warmth, continually inspiring conversations around belonging and empathy across the world.
