Acheampong Joel

Joel Acheampong was born on 5 February 1975 in Kwadaso, Kumasi, Ghana. At the age of six, he contracted poliomyelitis and has since then been unable to use either his legs or arms and hands for any activities whatever. His desire for a formal school education led him to write by holding a pen between his teeth. This also led to his beginning to draw and to paint by the same method in 1996. The then headmistress of his primary school, Cecilia Menka, admitted him to the 6th year of primary school when he was 21 years old. Four years later, he took the BSCE exam, and passed. He then went on to graduate from the Jachie Pramso Senior High School in Kumasi. With great perseverance, he incessantly painted by mouth, training himself further through self-study and also with the help of the painting teacher Mark Gyebi Nyante. In the meantime, the artist has made quite a stir with his exhibitions. Print media and television have frequently reported on his work.