Past
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Women of The Elephant Tusk: Ndi Otu Odu
Women of The Elephant Tusk 8 - 29 Sep 2024 Welcome to "Women of the Elephant Tusk: ndi otu odu," an exhibition dedicated to the women of Otu Odu Society of Onicha, a vibrant commercial city along the Niger River in South-eastern Nigeria, renowned for its rich cultural heritage and bustling markets.
The Otu Odu Society, also known as the Ivory Society, has a rich history dating back to the formation of Onitsha in the 16th century. Historical texts from the 18th century document the significant roles these women have played in preserving the cultural heritage of the Igbo people. In those times, Igbu Odu, or wearing ivory by women, was traditionally an individual affair until it evolved into a societal practice in recent times.
In the Onicha monarchical system, while no woman has ever been known to rule or sit in the council of the king, women held the complementary position of Omu - the wife of a king. The last known incumbent, Omu Nwagboka, was enthroned in 1884 and held the position until her death in 1880. Omu Nwagboka, herself an ivory wearer, chose her councillors, known as Otu Ogene, from women who had taken ivory. After the death of Omu Nwagboka, the Otu Odu only then became a formally recognized institution in 1959. There has been no Omu since.
A distinctive feature of the Otu Odu women is their ceremonial attire, which includes a white wrapper, head-tie, coral beads and of course, the Odu Aka (bracelets) and Odu Ukwu (anklets). The choice of white symbolizes purity, unity, and the society's commitment to maintaining their cultural legacy.
This exhibition celebrates the resilience, strength, and leadership of the women of the Otu Odu Society. The artworks on display intertwine familial legacy with cultural exploration, offering a heartfelt tribute to these powerful figures. Archival materials and personal stories further highlight the
society's impact and the important role these women play in preserving and promoting Igbo traditions.
You are now invited to immerse yourself in this journey into the heart of Igbo culture and tradition, and to appreciate the enduring legacy of the women of the Otu Odu Society of Onicha Ado N’Idu. Read more -
Our Story II
Reflections on Building an Institutional Collection 2 Jun - 30 Sep 2024 SMO is proud to present Our Story II, an exhibition of artworks selected from the Wheatbaker hotel’s permanent collection. Our Story II celebrates highlights of SMO’s curatorial journey over the past 13 years, since we started curating the hotel’s spaces in 2011. Our Story shows the growth and maturity of... Read more -
Gatherings
A Solo Exhibition by George Edozie 23 Mar - 31 May 2024 Multidisciplinary artist George Edozie was born in 1972 in Enugu state, Nigeria. His artistic talents emerged during his early childhood in Nsukka where he would create paintings, sketches and other crafts. He enrolled at the University of Benin where he graduated with a Bachelors Honors degree in Fine and Applied... Read more -
Herbert's Art & Soul
In Celebration of Herbert, Chizoba & Chizi 4 - 6 Mar 2024 This commemorative exhibition of sixteen carefully curated artworks from the Wigwe Collectioncelebrates the spirit, ethos, passion, and exceptional eye of one of Africa’s most inspiring and dynamic art collectors. Each piece was close to Herbert’s heart, and many have graced the walls of his home and office for years, becoming... Read more -
Joy
Recent Works by 21 established artists from The Guild of Professional Fine Artists of Nigeria 3 Oct - 17 Nov 2023 SMO Contemporary Art is pleased to present “Joy”, an exhibition of 49 paintings, sketches, sculptures and mixed media works by members of the Guild of Professional Fine Artists of Nigeria, hosted by the Wheatbaker. This exhibition collectively conveys messages of hope and resilience and takes viewers on a captivating journey... Read more -
Journeys
9 Jul - 10 Sep 2023 The exhibition features works by Ademola Ojo, Aluu Prosper, Collins Abinoro, Ejiro Fenegal, Iniobong Usoro, Praise Sanni-Adeniyi, Prudence Chimutuwah, Robert Oniha, Sanjo Lawal and Tumininu Gbebire, which explore the diverse questions we grapple with on our life journeys in search of meaning. The artists, ranging in age from 23 to... Read more -
Kindred Spirits
1 May - 30 Jun 2023 Welcome to Kindred Spirits, a world of rich textures and nuanced critique, created by Tayo Olayode and Ade Odunfa, two important, mid-career, experimental artists who have joined forces to exhibit their latest work, after twenty-five years of friendship and joint artistic practice. What is unique about this duo is that... Read more -
Ife Mmuo: From The Spirit
2 Nov 2022 - 15 Jan 2023 SMO Contemporary Art is delighted to present Ife Mmuo: from the spirit, an exhibition of 58 paintings and drawings by Olisa Nwadiogbu. Nwadiogbu is an important artist of his generation, whose historically relevant works covering 36 years of artistic practice provide gravitas to the fast paced world of contemporary African... Read more -
Amazing Nigeria
27 Oct - 6 Nov 2022 An exhibition of photographs by Kelechi Amadi-Obi Read more -
The Black Effect: Joy in Identity
4 - 31 Oct 2022 In celebration of Black History Month we are delighted to spotlight nine dynamic Black British artists who explore the concept of joy and identity within the Black British community, and whose work have had a powerful Black Effect. The selected artists specifically navigate the undeniable power and the measurable influence... Read more -
Crossroads
6 Aug - 7 Oct 2022 CROSSROADS is made up of thirty-three paintings, sculptures, photographs and mixed-media works by Adeniyi Adewole, Ashiata Shaibu, The Creatus, Boluwatife Lawal, Christopher Samuel Idowu, Kevwe Eru, David Ibukun Oniyide, Francis Nwajiaku Uche, Odia Odibo, Ikenna Obinka and Victor Sonoiki. Each artist delves into themes which explore our culture, personal freedom,... Read more -
The Wheatbaker Collection
1 Feb - 1 Mar 2022 It is with great pleasure that we announce the latest exhibition currently on at The Wheatbaker Hotel in Ikoyi. After a decade of showcasing leading and emerging local talent, SMO Contemporary Art and The Wheatbaker have built a successful art partnership that remains a unique and enriching way to showcase... Read more -
Sense of Self
3 Nov 2021 - 16 Jan 2022 Sense of Self is a collection of painting’s by Olawunmi Banjo with the exploration of three central themes: accepting self, letting go of the past, and embracing present moments . It is her ode to our life-long journey towards self-realisation and actualisation, “clarity coming by aligning with the core of our inner being”. Read more -
Politics of Representation
20 Sep - 10 Oct 2021 Through Oliver Enwonwu’s strong figurative style, Politics of Representation interrogates the complex layers of history connecting the African continent with the West. His powerful portraiture celebrates the cultural, political, and socio-economic achievements of Africans and how these have affected the identity of the global black race. Read more -
Vantage Point
28 Aug - 24 Oct 2021 In Vantage Point, Oyebola Famuyiwa and Bernard Kalu explore the culture, history, and aesthetics of Lagos with 25 spectacular photographs shot from unique perspectives and angles which reveal the patterns, colors, textures and complexity of this vibrant metropolis with its ever expanding population and critical environmental challenges. Read more -
Particles In Motion
1 May - 31 Jul 2021 A solo exhibition of recent drawings, paintings and poetry by award winning, Los Angeles based, artist and writer, Ada Udechukwu, celebrating her artistic homecoming to Nigeria after seventeen years. Read more -
Towards the Light
3 Nov 2020 - 5 Mar 2021 Towards The Light is a solo exhibition of recent works by painter-philosopher Ibe Ananaba, which brings solace at a time of emotional and political fatigue as we near the end of a very challenging year. While the constraints on our lives in the midst of the corona pandemic are not relenting, and we sustain our support for Nigeria’s inspiring youth movement calling for good governance and an end to police brutality. Ananaba’s works remind us to continue to tap into the power of community, and the hope, vitality and pure creative energy of our visionary, impatient youth. Read more -
Being Free
3 Oct - 1 Nov 2020 In Being Free, Deborah Segun explores the diverse bodies of women through shape and colour, portraiture and narrative, creating an important counterpoint to society’s patriarchal notion of the “ideal woman”. Combining abstraction and figuration Segun creates voluptuous figures in varied graceful poses, celebrating the female form in a refreshing, lyrical style, in her solo exhibition. Read more -
Neo Custodians
6 - 30 Sep 2020 In Neo Custodians, three young artists, Ifeatuanya “Ify” Chiejina, Nwakuso Edozien, and Johnson Eziefula sift through layers of social, genetic, and cultural inheritance and influences in an attempt to define, examine, and celebrate self. Read more -
Dis Lagos Life
24 Feb - 31 May 2020 Dis Lagos Life is an exhibition of photographs and digital collage exposing the pulsating heartbeat of an unforgiving megacity through the lens of six contemporary artists, who have lived, breathed, and found meaning by exploring the color and vibe of Lagos. It takes viewers on a journey through the streets and occurrences in Lagos. Pushing us out of our curated bubbles into the raw beauty and harsh realities of the city, forcing us to engage, discuss, speak out, and make change - even if just in our little corners. Read more -
Convergence
24 Nov 2019 - 15 Feb 2020 In Convergence, we experience the past, present and future coalesce through Obi Okigbo's delicate ink and pigment paintings on linen, canvas and silk, revealing an artist whose creative expression comes alive in her own unique space. She explores the meeting point of physical and spiritual birth, life and death, and eventual transcendence. Read more -
A Question of Being
28 Oct 2019 - 12 Jan 2020 A Question of Being presents “the vibrancy of hybrid cultures” referencing race, history, memory, gender, time, and beauty according to Emeka Udemba. Read more -
No Room For Fear
1 - 31 Oct 2019 Inspired by the prophetic words of late Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison, the art exhibition No Room For Fear, co-curated by SMO Contemporary Art and the Black British Female Artists Collective (BBFA) is being hosted by leading international law firm, Hogan Lovells in London. Read more -
If Walls Could Speak
22 Sep - 8 Nov 2019 Patrick Akpojotor's signature anthropomorphic structures with their cubist geometry, perspective, balance, and form, are his creative response to the realities of mega-city population pressure. His imagined structures and abstract compositions interrogate our sense of rootedness and belonging. Akpojotor won the first Art X Lagos Prize for emerging artists with this important body of work. Read more -
Stasis
31 Aug - 18 Sep 2019 Stasis is an exhibition of recent works by Djakou Kassi Nathalie, Olawunmi Banjo and Kelechi Nwaneri, who touch an existential raw nerve as they explore our yearning for balance and belonging in an ever changing physical and emotional landscape. Read more -
White Ebony | Skin Deep
25 May - 19 Jul 2019 White Ebony, an exhibition of thought provoking photographs by social activist photographer Yetunde Ayeni-Babaeko, captures the complexity of life that Persons with Albinism (PWA) face daily. Read more -
ENI! You Can Always Tell Where the Elephant Has Passed By
27 Apr - 22 Jul 2019 In celebration of 60 years of studio practice, ENI! presents 31 rare prints spanning the prolific career of Professor Bruce Onobrakpeya, one of Nigeria’s most prestigious artistic pioneers. Read more -
Diffusion
30 Mar - 17 May 2019 Promise Onali and Chibuike Uzoma question our collective journey of emotional, spiritual and physical diffusion through time and space. Read more -
Nuance
30 Oct 2018 - 31 Jan 2019 Nuance showcases paintings on canvas and two prints, which draw us into Victor Butler’s multilayered landscapes of myriad perspectives, subtly referencing traditional narratives in surreal spaces influenced by mathematics, science and natural history. Read more -
Inner Light
20 Oct - 7 Dec 2018 Inner Light is a retrospective exhibition of rare works by Oseoloka Osadebe, a member of the famous Zaria Art Society, popularly called the Zaria Rebels, who are the founding fathers of contemporary art in Nigeria. It is Oseloka Osadebe’s first retrospective exhibition of eighty-five paintings, sketches, drawings, posters, and one... Read more -
The Contemporaries II
29 Sep 2018 - 15 Jan 2019 The Contemporaries II presents strong visual narratives and powerful figurative abstractions by Kenny Adewuyi, Kainebi Osahenye, and Kelani Abass, which explore historic socio-political narratives, the dignity of labour, technology, and the environment vis-a-vis unbridled consumerism. Read more -
motionEmotion
28 Jun - 30 Jul 2018 motionEmotion is the culmination of a lifelong dream of Kwubiri’s, in which he speaks to the power of music on the creative soul. Read more -
GBAM!
9 Jun - 15 Sep 2018 The WheatbaAn exhibition of 25 photographs, GBAM! questions our continual unearthing, uncovering, discovering and re-imagining perfection by drawing on our history and identity as Africans. It presents evocative photographs by Daniel Obasi, Kadara Enyeasi, Kola Oshalusi, Lex Ash, Noma Osula and Ola Ebiti, six avant-garde fashion photographers exploring who we are, and who we aspire to become as we explore our collective GBAM! Read more -
Connecting The Dots
12 May - 30 Aug 2018 Connecting the Dots exposes the different layers of Olumide Onadipe's artistic personality, in which he grapples with identity and migration vis-à-vis a universal yearning for global citizenship and communication across a world of bold color. Read more -
Unmasked
11 Mar - 31 May 2018 UNMASKED explores the link between our thought world vis-a-vis the pressures women face in society as revealed in the art of Djakou Kassi Nathalie, Koromone Koroye, Nengi Omuku, Nyancho Nwanri, Queen Nwaneri, Reha Shishodia, and Somi Nwandu. How do we break down societal constructs on what it is and what... Read more -
Holiday Art Pop Up
4 Dec 2017 - 1 Jan 2018 We are delighted to close out the year on a unique note by presenting amazing plastocast artworks by Pius Emorhokpor. Read more -
Heads Up, Keep Swimming
2 - 30 Nov 2017 Heads Up, Keep Swimming presents exciting new works by Modupeola Fadugba exploring the intricate balance between competition vis-à-vis cooperation within the stormy sea of the commercially driven global art scene. Read more -
The Wheatbaker Collection
16 - 22 Sep 2017 Nigeria’s premiere luxury boutique hotel, The Wheatbaker, is at the forefront of contemporary Nigerian art with their robust and innovative art exhibitions all year round since it opened it's doors in 2011. It is with great pleasure and pride that The Wheatbaker presents its private art collection to the public. Read more -
WANDERLUST
8 Jul - 15 Sep 2017 WANDERLUST is an exhibition of 36 paintings, mixed media, photographs, and sculpture, which draw on our collective desire to travel and explore the world. The term is deeply ingrained in the creative DNA of these artists with strong roots in Germany and Nigeria, who have adventured and experienced living across borders. Read more -
Modern Interpretations
3 Jun - 30 Aug 2017 Offering a rare glimpse into her world, Titi Omoighe showcases the inner workings of her mind with 34 paintings in Modern Interpretations. Read more -
Standing Out II
7 Mar - 15 May 2017 Standing Out II acknowledges how women continue to break through and overcome physical, psychological, emotional, professional and societal boundaries with unforgiving energy and elan. Read more -
Expansion of Time
27 Feb - 28 Apr 2017 Expansion of Time is a phrase which encapsulates the very essence of both artists' work. They project their creative voices by exploring different aspects of time, memory, and experience in works, which draw on a diverse and rich ethnic lineage. Their work comes from the boundless and often chaotic energy that keeps expanding against the push of modernity vis-à-vis the pull of developing world inequities. Read more -
Permutations
21 Jan - 4 Mar 2017 PERMUTATIONS is an exciting exhibition showcasing 38 impressive mixed media artworks. It has been years in the making, as Tayo Olayode, an award winning artist who has taken part in group exhibitions in Ghana, Kenya, USA, Britain, Dubai, and Canada finally presents his first solo-exhibition in Nigeria. Read more -
FREEDOM
15 Oct 2016 - 15 Jan 2017 Freedom is a rare exhibition of 39 paintings and sculptures by Gbenga Offo, a leading Nigerian contemporary artist. The highlight of Freedom is the presentation of Offo’s first collection of metal sculptures in bronze, wrought iron and stainless steel. Read more -
New Threads
10 Oct - 17 Nov 2016 New Threads is an exhibition which presents recent paintings, sculptures and photographs created by seven of Ghana’s leading and emerging contemporary artists. Read more -
Onobrakpeya & The Harmattan Workshop
19 Sep - 16 Dec 2016 Prof. Bruce Onobrakpeya is one of Africa’s most gifted and inspiring experimental artists. To know and respect him is to admire his work, as well as appreciate the immense positive influence he has had on a whole generation of artists, who have been reinvigorated and strengthened by his Harmattan Workshops. The quintessential teacher at heart, his life work has been to inspire others to discover and nurture the “artist child” within them. Read more -
Mental Space
4 Jul - 15 Sep 2016 There is something so refreshingly cerebral about Duke Asidere’s work. I think in his generation of artists – he is one of the most uninhibited creative intellectuals. His works touch on so many deep issues in our society, and his subtle use of headlines tease and beckon the viewer to walk up close to read the partly submerged text, and then step back smiling, when we realize the unapologetic message of the piece. Read more -
Standing Out
14 May - 15 Aug 2016 Standing Out showcases the art of eleven leading and emerging female artists whose work reflects a multitude of issues surrounding feminism and equality, through a variety of media including painting, photography, print, sculpture, clay, glass, weaving, mixed media and performance. What echoes through all the works is energy, resilience, interconnections and overlapping memories and identities, with rich visual metaphors of breaking boundaries across psychological, physical and emotional landscapes. Read more -
Evolving Currents
17 Apr - 16 Jun 2016 Evolving Currents, a joint exhibition of recent work by leading contemporary sculptor Raqib Bashorun and fast-rising painter Chika Idu is suggestive of creative currents that continue to flow between consecutive generations of artists. Read more -
People’s Paradise
30 Mar - 30 Apr 2016 Based on a theme of conflict resolution, People's Paradise is a visual narrative of the various constructs that result in social and economical upheaval, and how the Human Factor is the key to any progress. Read more -
Equal Rights
24 Jan - 20 Mar 2016 In “Equal Rights”, Mr. Mike Omoighe offers an invitation to let go, claim our creative space, and allow his dynamic images and narratives to wash over us. The theme of this solo art exhibition, Unule Unuile Ozese, is a philosophy of the Esan People meaning 'Equal Rights'. It is a visual narrative on the delicate balance of love and power in life. Read more -
Best of Bruce
12 Dec 2015 - 30 Jan 2016 The Aba Na Nya series is named after the fabrics that have been used as a textile canvas for his work. Individual mask like faces created from engravings and multi-media collages with pieces of cloth have been photographed using a new xerograph technique. Read more -
Recent Works: Ibe Ananaba & Tony Nsofor
1 - 24 Nov 2015 An art exhibition showcasing paintings and mixed media works by phenomenal contemporary artists, Tony Nsofor and Ibe Ananaba, introduces art enthusiasts to the very heart and pulse of Nigerian creativity responding to global issues such as migration and the effect of social media on inter-personal communication. Read more -
The Contemporaries
12 Oct - 13 Nov 2015 The Contemporaries, a stunning exhibition of paintings, sculptures, drawings, and mixed media works is a timely reflection of current trends in Nigeria and makes stirring and sometimes, tongue-in-cheek, comments about a nation expectant of change. It Read more -
The summer art salon
18 Jul - 4 Sep 2015 Adeyinka Akingbade skillfully uses paper waste to create 36 rich, multi-textured works, which focus predominantly on portraiture and abstract landscapes. His first solo exhibition of mixed media works on paper, canvas and board, reflects the dexterity of an artist who expresses the tenacity of life and relationships by using perforated rubber sheets and tiny paper punched holes to show that Africans need the same tenacity and toughness to survive, as the materials he manipulates. Read more -
Akalaka
19 Apr - 15 Jul 2015 Besides being an impressive showing by each artist, AKALAKA is an important home coming for two influential artists of the Uli tradition, who have not had a major showing in Nigeria since the mid 1990’s. Read more -
Recent Works: Rom Isichei & Kainebi Osahenye
23 Mar - 30 Apr 2015 An exhibition of paintings and mixed media works by Rom Isichei and Kainebi Osahenye, shows an intense exploration of texture, colour, scale, style, and technique of two internationally recognized experimental artists. Rom Isichei’s artworks are mostly figurative in composition, focusing on society’s self-obsession and excess consumerism while searching for ideal beauty. Read more -
Photographer’s Odyssey
20 Mar - 9 Apr 2015 A Photographer’s Odyssey, an exhibition of black and white photographs taken by Architect Gillian Hopwood in 1954, in conjunction with the release of a book with the same title, presents the growth of Lagos through photographs taken over a 60-year period She photographed iconic buildings and areas in old Lagos, including Central Mosque and Tinubu Square, Holy Cross Cathedral and Upper Broad Street, and the Brazilian Quarter and Onikan. Read more -
Eko Moves
30 Nov 2014 - 15 Feb 2015 Eko Moves captures the beauty of dance, movement, time and space within the vibrant, always thriving megacity of Lagos. This impressive body of work is a visual chronicle of a two year journey during in which Ayeni Babaeko challenged dancers of the Nigerian dance group, the Society for the Performing Arts of Nigeria (SPAN), to leave the comfort of their mirrored studios, and expertly lit stages, and dance through the markets, the bus stops, the beaches, the under-bridge-spaces, the water highways and shanty towns of Lagos for the people of Eko. Read more -
Connections
25 Oct - 25 Nov 2014 Connections presents two artists, Uchay Joel Chima and Jimmy Uche Nwanne, whose subtle lines and texture, kinetic color and unique materiality bring the vibrant Lagos art scene closer to the global need to keep connected, linked and inter-dependent. Read more -
Homeland Memories
23 Jun - 30 Aug 2014 As Nigerians celebrate 100 years of nationhood since Lord Lugard joined the southern and northern protectorates in 1914, Onyema Offoedu-Okeke’s exhibition, Homeland Memories, reminds us of the importance of reviving our forgotten artistic and cultural heritage. Offoedu-Okeke’s work taps into our “myths, religions, folklores, science, and art through imagination” to provide an important cultural platform and context – the missing starting blocks needed to progress as a nation and continent. Read more -
Unfurling
29 May - 31 Aug 2014 Unfurling is a unique exhibition of photographs and poems by Sandra and Amara Obiago, a mother-daughter artistic journey. The exhibition is made up of a diverse body of images presented on large canvases and aluminum dibond plates, depicting expressions, patterns and textures in landscape, nature, cloth, as well as light filled architectural spaces. Read more -
Duality
7 - 30 Apr 2014 Isaac Iken Emokpae’s composition of unusual shapes and figures using bold colours and profound poetry produces art that transcends borders. In Duality, two series of works are presented: a few canvases from his Autumn series, depicting stark landscapes with silhouette trees, paired with his Monad series, presenting a young man’s philosophical journey and expanding on his artistic roots. Read more -
Affinity
24 Mar - 30 Apr 2014 Affinity is an impressive exhibition of sculptures by Kehinde Ken Adewuyi and watercolors by Chinwe Uwatse. The exhibition is being presented by two Nigerian artists who both have a deep commitment to drawing attention to the struggles and questions of human existence through their art. Read more -
Exhibition of recent works by Bruce Onobrakpeya
2 - 14 Dec 2013 The exhibition is made up of exceptional pieces which reflect over 50 years of Professor Bruce Onobrakpeya outstanding career. There are serigraphs from his famous “Sunshine period” of the 1960s-1970s, and paintings and etchings that feature images from his “Dance to Enchanting Songs” series. There are also small pendants the size of a mobile phone, that reflect images and symbols drawn from his “Esirogbo” and “migratory media” techniques. Read more -
Mother Tongue
26 Oct - 12 Nov 2013 We are introduced to a multi-layered, almost opaque world of color and silhouettes that gently seeps in to our visual consciousness. Mother Tongue is a body of work that has three distinct layers: his celebrated dripping paint technique on large canvases with bald headed figures engulfed in a sea of paint dots. Read more -
Here and There
5 Oct - 5 Dec 2013 Here & There is an exhibition celebrating the artistic journey of Polly Alakija, a seasoned painter, muralist, illustrator and designer. Alakija has spent the last 24 years creating rich, predominantly figurative artwork, which are inspired by quotidian life in Africa. Read more -
Metal Fusion
14 Sep - 12 Oct 2013 Metal Fusion is a body of work which celebrates new expressions in Nigerian metal art, from the geometric stainless steel sculptures of master sculptor Billy Omabegho, to the symbolic forms created by carefully twisted and crocheted galvanized steel wires by Uche Peters, to the hammered and welded abstract mild steel forms of Fidelis Odogwu, to the layered metal montages of Alex Nwokolo. What is being presented is a diversified selection of 18 wall and freestanding sculptures that touch on universal themes. Read more -
Inner World Outer Space
8 Jun - 15 Sep 2013 The exhibition theme, Inner Worlds, Outer Space touches on the different experiences Raoul Olawale da Silva has had in his fatherland Nigeria, his motherland Switzerland, combined with a Brazilian ancestry. He is an artist who has used these multi-ethnic experiences to create vivid images that touch on inner reflection and outer color. Read more -
Amusing the muse
29 Apr - 31 May 2013 Victor Ehikhamenor’s unique calligraphic style of black and white symbolic images presents a fresh perspective on contemporary African art. His style is influenced by the drawings he grew up with on the walls of sacred spaces in Udomi-Uwessan, Edo State, Nigeria. Over the years, we have seen his bold symbols encased in doors and window frames as in his Entrances and Exits series, or literally bouncing “off and through” vibrant, multi-layered, colorful paintings. Read more -
Flow
16 Feb - 15 Apr 2013 Nnenna Okore, who returns to her native Nigeria from the United Sates, is one of the foremost artists of her generation. She is celebrated internationally for her largely abstract works, which are inspired by textures, colors and landscapes, created mostly from discarded materials in her environment. Okore relies on the use of flotsam or discarded objects, which are transformed into intricate sculptures and installations through repetitive and labor-intensive techniques. Read more -
Recent sculptures by Billy Omabegho
13 May 2012 - 28 May 2013 Billy Omabegho, internationally celebrated contemporary artist, has returned home to Nigeria with an exciting new exhibition of recent modern minimalist sculptures. Omabegho, who is a respected visual artist, furniture designer, architect, and contemporary sculptor, is exhibiting an impressive new body of aluminum, stainless steel, wood & bronze forms, after many years working in his New York studio. Read more -
Making History
26 Jan - 1 Mar 2012 Read more -
The Collectors' Series
13 - 30 Nov 2011 The Collectors' Series was birthed when about 35 collectors, curators, and senior artists met. They spoke about their experiences collecting art, exhibiting their collections locally and internationally, and the needs within Nigeria's artistic space. An overwhelming conclusion was the need to foster art appreciation locally, and to strategically invest in strengthening individual artists. Read more
