Born in Dakar, Senegal, and raised in the United States, Bakki is a fine artist whose work is shaped by the tension and harmony of multiple cultural worlds. Working primarily in oil, he creates realistic portraits and figurative scenes focused on presence, likeness, and psychological depth.

His paintings depict both people and animals in moments that feel emotionally true, even when the setting departs from realism. Musicians absorbed in performance, athletes immersed in motion, and animals rendered with human attributes or symbolic gestures recur throughout his work. Whether grounded in observation or deliberately constructed, each image is intended to convey an inner state rather than a literal scene.

Jazz influences Bakki’s working process through its emphasis on improvisation, feel, and spontaneity. Rather than following rigid plans, his paintings develop intuitively, guided by responsiveness to the subject and the evolving image on the surface.

His interest in psychology serves as the driving force behind the work itself. While jazz shapes how the paintings are made, psychology informs why they are made, directing his focus toward presence, emotional states, and the inner life of his subjects.

He accepts a limited number of commissions each year, focused on portraits and legacy works created in close collaboration with collectors.