Ranti Bam

Bio

Ranti Bam (b. 1982, Lagos, Nigeria) is an artist based in Paris and raised across two continents, whose practice focuses on using clay as a profound medium for personal and collective exploration. Her work transforms each piece into a portal through which she delves into complex themes of fragility, vulnerability, intimacy, and care. Bam weaves diverse cultural influences and spiritual practices into her work. Her creations serve as hearths around which people gather in contemplation and meditation. And through each work, the question is posed: how do we find liberation and connection within the material world?

Ranti Bam pursued her formal studies in London where she received an MA from The Cass Faculty of Art, Architecture and Design and a diploma in ceramics from City Lit. Bam’s exhibitions include James Cohan, New York (2024), Andrehn Schiptjenko (2024), Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna, Austria (2023), Catinca Tabacaru, Bucharest (2022), MAK, Vienna (2023), Liverpool Biennial (2023). Bam’s work is represented in the numerous private and public collections including of The Brooklyn Museum, Beth Rudin DeWoody Collection, Studio Museum, Chazen Museum of Arts, Princeton University, and the Victoria & Albert Museum

In Yli-Ii, Bam’s Ilé-Ìlá brings the ancient craft of sculpting clay into dialogue with the surrounding forest at the Kierikki Stone Age Village. Eight clay vessels, each 2.5 metres high will be positioned among the trees and near the lakeshore.  The work draws on prehistoric ceramics and their spiritual resonance, intertwined with Bam’s interest in Ifá, the Yoruba system of knowledge and divination from her Nigerian heritage. Formed through the artist’s direct, physical engagement with clay, these tactile sculptures evoke the profound bond between humans and the earth, echoing through a landscape layered with archaeological memory.

Climate Clock public art trail will launch in June 2026.