Umoja African Art Blog

The Ballerina 10, hand-cast bronze ballerina statue with a gold patina
How to Clean a Bronze Statue Without Removing the Patina
How to clean and care for a bronze statue at home without damaging its hand-laid patina. Read more...
The Muse 42, hand-cast African bronze sculpture of a woman in a gold relief gown
African Art Gifts: A Holiday Gift Guide of One-of-a-Kind Pieces
Holiday gift ideas for art lovers: hand-cast African bronze sculptures and handmade textured paintings, by budget, from $340. Read more...
African woman carrying a basket on her head, in gold and white, handmade textured painting on canvas, full view
Handmade Textured Paintings vs Prints: What You're Really Buying
Textured painting or print? How to tell a handmade textured canvas from a printed one, and what really goes into a hand-painted piece. Read more...
Gold African wall art of six women carrying vessels, handmade textured painting hung above a leather sofa in a living room
African Wall Art for the Living Room: How to Choose and Hang It
How to choose African wall art for your living room: the right size above a sofa, the subject, the palette, the frame and the hanging height. Read more...
The bronze workshop of Issouf, Boureima and Boukary in Ouagadougou
Lost wax: the art of casting a piece only once
In a workshop in Ouagadougou, three artisans cast bronze by hand, with one of the oldest techniques in the world. We followed a piece from the first touch of wax... Read more...
Molten bronze poured into clay moulds in the workshop in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
How Bronze Sculptures Are Made: Lost-Wax Casting, Step by Step
How a bronze sculpture is made by lost wax, step by step, in a workshop in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Read more...