Modou_Dieng Yacine

Modou_Dieng Yacine

From Cerebral Women Art Talks Podcast by Phyllis Hollis

April 28, 2026 · 20 min

About this episode

This episode features artist Modou Dieng Yacine discussing his work and themes related to identity and migration.

Modou Dieng Yacine . Born in Saint-Louis (Senegal), Modou Dieng Yacine studied at the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Dakar (Senegal) and later earned an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in California. He currently lives and works in Chicago, and is also active as a curator/co-founder of the curatorial company Blackpuffin. Dieng Yacine works across painting, photography, collage, and mixed media. He often uses non-traditional materials such as denim, burlap, cardboard, vinyl records, archival prints, and hybrid materials layered onto surfaces. He explores spatial/architectural motifs, layering of materials, de-construction of façades, and reveals negative space (cut-outs, hollows) as a strategy. Major themes in his practices are identity, migration, postcolonial history, architecture & habitat, and the intersection of African and Western cultures. Dieng Yacine references the notion of asymmetrical parallelism (a term from poet/philosopher Léopold Sédar Senghor) to describe rhythmic repetition in time/space, which he applies in his compositions. The structure of the canvas itself often becomes part of the message (e.g., exposing stretcher bars, hollows behind façades) to…

People in this episode

Host: Phyllis Hollis

Guest: Modou Dieng Yacine

Topics covered

  • identity
  • migration
  • postcolonial history
  • architecture
  • African and Western cultures
  • mixed media art

Keywords

  • Modou Dieng Yacine
  • art
  • curator
  • mixed media
  • postcolonial
  • identity
  • migration
  • African culture
  • Western culture

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: École Nationale des Beaux-Arts, San Francisco Art Institute, Blackpuffin, Studio Museum, Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Gervanne and Mathias Lerind Collection, Kranzberg foundation

Places: Saint-Louis, Dakar, Chicago

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