GHANAIAN SCULPTOR EL ANATSUI HONORED AT TIME100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE GALA IN NEW YORK

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By Oyiza Adaba, New York

April 28, 2023

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“Trust has never been more important, and it speaks to both our legacy and our future”

— Jessica Sibley, Time Magazine CEO

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Adoring fans lined the streets leading up to the Jazz at Lincoln Center, where Time Magazine was hosting a gala in honor of Time100 Most Influential People.

Notable names were included in this year’s list of categories, which were: Artists, Icons, Pioneers, Leaders, Titans and Innovators. .Actress Jessica Collidge hosted and joked, "Think of how many followers you could get", while calling for further collaboration among honorees. American rapper and “pioneer” honoree, Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini, aka Doja Cat, thrilled the 300 plus guests with her performance.

Among the prominent names at the event were Salma Hayek Pinault, Michael B. Jordan, Keegan-Michael Key, Austin Butler and Angela Bassett. Veteran Director Steven Spielberg received the Impact Award, and credited Time Magazine's longevity - since the first issue on March 3, 1923 - to keeping up with current issues. The plaque was presented to him by two former child stars from his films, Drew Barrymore and Ke Huy Quan

Africa was well represented on the list with Ghanaian sculptor, El Anatsui - one of the most respected, international contemporary artists - leading the way. Other game changers from the continent were Wangira Mathai, a Kenyan environmentalist and activist, VP/Regional Director World Resources Institute; Dimie Ogoina, a Nigerian infectious disease, physician-scientist at Niger Delta University and President of the Nigerian Infectious Diseases Society; Nigerian politician and President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu; Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, the Tanzanian biodiversity leader and Cameroonian soccer player, Kylian Mbappé.

In an interview with El Anatsui, an Emeritus Professor of Sculpture, he fondly recalled the early years of his career, when he was questioned about what he could possibly do in art. He described this year’s recognition from Time magazine as "quite significant, indicating that I have been able to make an impact and do something with my art”.

Video Highlights: El Anatsui at Time100. Interview by Oyiza Adaba

Jazz at Lincoln Center is a prestigious upscale venue in New York City that has hosted Jazz and Blues greats, such as Miles Davis, Wes Montgomery, Ella Fitzgerald, Wayne Shorter, BB King, Charles Mingus, Billie Holiday, and Sarah Vaughn.

Time100 is a yearly event that selects and brings together prominent, history-making, global figures. The final list of these influential individuals is exclusively chosen by Time’s editors, with nominations coming from the Time 100 alumni and the magazine's international writing staff. The ceremony has been held annually since 2004.

Photo Highlights: Photos: Africa-Related/elanatsui.art

Time100 Honoree Pin for artist and sculptor El Anatsui

Fans lined the entrance of Jazz @ Lincoln Center

Time100 Red Carpet & Press

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui on the red carpet

Time Magazine has stood the test of Time...

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with fellow Honoree American artist/Sculptor Simone Leigh (in white).

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with fellow Honoree Monica Raye Simpson, Executive Director of SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective.

Oyiza Adaba Journalist/Filmmaker at Africa-Related with Time100 Honorees artist and sculptor El Anatsui and Wangira Mathai, Kenyan environmentalist and activist, VP/Regional Director WRI

Time100 Cocktail Lounge. Sponsored by Cadillac

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with fellow Honorees Hollywood actress and talk show host Drew Barrymore, and Celebrity Chef and TV host Padma Lakshmi

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with fellow Honoree Salma Hayek Pinault, Mexican/American actress and film producer.

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with U.S Civil Rights Attorney and activist Benjamin Crump

Celebrity Chef and TV host Padma Lakshmi with a guest

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with fellow Honoree Wangira Mathai, Kenyan environmentalist and activist, VP/Regional Director World Resources Institute.

Time100 Honoree El Anatsui with Gayle King, TV personality/Journalist and co-host of CBS This Morning

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with fellow Honoree Salma Hayek Pinault, Mexican/American actress and film producer.

Actress and Producer Angela Bassett toasted to "merit"

Musical Interlude: Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini, aka Doja Cat

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with Veteran Hollywood Director and Impact Award recipient Steven Spielberg and Oyiza Adaba Journalist/Filmmaker at Africa-Related.

Tiffany Haaddish chats with Model Ashley Graham and guests at the dinner table

Time100 Honoree Dimie Ogoina Nigerian infectious disease, physician-scientist at Niger Delta University and President of the Nigerian Infectious Diseases Society

Time100 Honoree artist and sculptor El Anatsui with American Model Ashley Graham, her husband Justin Ervin and Oyiza Adaba Journalist/Filmmaker at Africa-Related.

A Collaboration? Time100 Honorees artist and sculptor El Anatsui and Wangira Mathai, Kenyan environmentalist and activist, VP/Regional Director WRI.

Oyiza Adaba Journalist/Filmmaker at Africa-Related.

Evening Host: Actress Jessica Collidge

Presenter: Actress Tiffany Haddish

See complete list: Time100 Most Influential People 2023

ARTISTS

• Michael B. Jordan

• Drew Barrymore

• Ali Wong

• Austin Butler

• Aubrey Plaza

• Rian Johnson

• Salma Hayek Pinault

• Zoe Saldaña

• Judy Blume

• Colin Farrell

• Lea Michele

• Simone Leigh

• Wolfgang Tillmans

• Suzan-Lori Parks

• Neil Gaiman

• Shervin Hajipour

• El Anatsui

• Colleen Hoover

• Steve Lacy

ICONS

• Jennifer Coolidge

• Ke Huy Quan

• Sara Mardini and Yusra Mardini

• Shah Rukh Khan

• Pedro Pascal

• Brittney Griner

• King Charles

• Salman Rushdie

• RowVaughn Wells

• Tracie D. Hall

• Peng Lifa

• Shannon Watts

• Haluk Levent

• Imara Jones

• Yvon Chouinard

PIONEERS

• Doja Cat

• Mikaela Shiffrin

• Bella Hadid

• Sam Altman

• Niloofar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi

• Thom Browne

• S.S. Rajamouli

• MrBeast

• Elizabeth Maruma Mrema

• Britney Schmidt and Peter Davis

• Sam Rivera

• Robin Zeng

• Edward Reynolds

• Margaret Mitchell

LEADERS

• Olena Zelenska

• Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

• Hakeem Jeffries

• Evan Gershkovich

• Janet Yellen

• Sherry Rehman

• Mitch McConnell

• Anthony Albanese

• Margrethe Vestager

• Joe Biden

• Samuel Alito

• Gustavo Petro

• Gina Raimondo

• Oleksandra Matviichuk

• Fumio Kishida

• Cindy McCain

• María Herrera Magdaleno

• Olaf Scholz

• Bola Ahmed Tinubu

• Min Aung Hlaing

TITANS

• Angela Bassett

• Laurene Powell Jobs

• Lionel Messi

• Padma Lakshmi

• Johan Rockstrom

• Beyoncé

• Patrick Mahomes II

• Elon Musk

• Gina Prince-Bythewood

• Karen Lynch

• Shou Zi Chew

• Ozlem Tureci and Ugur Sahin

• Deborah Lipstadt

INNOVATORS

• Bob Iger

• Sarah Kate Ellis

• Kylian Mbappé

• Natasha Lyonne

• Monica Simpson

• Nathan Fielder

• Wanjira Mathai

• Hidetaka Miyazaki

• Jerrod Carmichael

• Catherine Coleman Flowers

• Sean Sherman

• Iga Swiatek

• Kate Orff

• Dimie Ogoina

• Andrea Kritcher

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