In Kota Couple, Young Paris reimagines a pair of sacred reliquary figures from Gabon as timeless portraits. A husband and wife, reborn through a contemporary lens. Each painting presents a single figure, male and female, facing forward with quiet power, their gaze meeting the viewer’s in a moment of spiritual intimacy.

Set against crisp, illusionary Kuba-patterned backgrounds, the figures appear as if torn from history, their metallic faces and sculptural forms suspended between the ancient and the modern. The composition isolates them with reverence, transforming what were once ritual objects into personal icons of love, lineage, and memory.

Paris notes that the Kota Couple reminds him of his parents, two enduring presences whose union anchors his creative world. Through these works, he bridges heritage and identity, elevating ancestral symbols into a dialogue about family, devotion, and the preservation of African beauty through time.