Massimo Wanssi is a self-taught artist who in search of his chosen profession toured libraries to read on contemporary art and get versed in what he is now a master of.

According to him, civilisation deforms nature and allows her to remain at most, for time as a piece of art. Thus his sculptures partly amusing, partly with underlying symbolic background, in their originality, combines both spheres of culture and contemporary art.

Massimo, who began sculpturing professionally in 1979, had his first solo exhibition in 1992 at the French Cultural Centre in Lome. He has since had selected exhibitions in Germany, France, Italy and back home here in Accra, Ghana. His works have also been recognised internationally.

In 1992, Massimo received the coveted 14th July prize from the French Embassy in Lome. This was closely followed by another prize following an art competition organized by the Centro Orientamento Education de Brazio in Italy. In both instances, Massimo picked the first prize.

The artist talks about his mentor, Saka Akwei, a veteran sculptor and the advantage of readily coming across the materials he works with. I come by these scraps easily and besides they are quite affordable.