On March 30, Art collectors and enthusiasts will converge on the luxury house in the heart of Victoria Island, Lagos, Temple Muse as the duo of Promise Onali and Chibuike Uzoma will present 45 paintings and mixed media works at the show called, Diffusion.
Curated by the SMO Contemporary Art, DIFFUSION is a critical take on the evolution of consciousness and how our individual and communal identity is affected by history and socio-cultural evolution. Both Nigerian artists are very contemporary in style and content. They question our collective journey of emotional, spiritual and physical diffusion through time and space. Onali’s remarkable linear style and experimentation with wood, paper, fiber, metal, wire, fabrics, polystyrene and paint on canvas are a striking counterpoint to Uzoma’s deft, slashes and splashes of colour creating abstract scenes and portraits heavy with sub-text reflecting complex emotional mindscapes.
Highly influenced by science and philosophy, Onali, 37, studied Fine Art at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka where he graduated with a degree in painting in 2007. His use of diverse media to explore scientific questions such as the origin of evolution is grounded in strong linearity and embryonic metaphors. Onali’s fascination with the expansion of individual and collective consciousness is evident in the subtle layers of his mixed media works.
For Uzoma, 27, Ife and Benin provide much of the base for his studio work. A multidisciplinary artist, skilled at painting, photography, drawing and text, Uzoma graduated from the University of Benin in 2013 with a major in painting. He is heading to Yale University for a Masters of Fine Arts degree later in the year. Uzoma references contemporary politics in Africa and the Diaspora and questions popular culture against the backdrop of global conflict.
While Uzoma adds a bit of abstractism in his painting, Onali explores the use of white lace or wire gauze which gives a meshlike look to her painting.