Tracing Forms: Nigerian Art's Creative Process Unveiled at YSMA
From 1 March to 15 July 2026, the Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art (YSMA) at Pan-Atlantic University in Lagos, Nigeria, showcased 'Tracing Forms: The Art of Making,' curated by Charles Udeh. This exhibition explored the creative processes within contemporary Nigerian art, divided into five categories: pigment-based practices, material experimentation, digital works, ceramic practices, and materiality in picture-making. Featured artists included Eva Obodo, Tony Okpei, Kekere Ekun, and Tony Nsofor, whose 2019 piece 'Grim Polity: Ballot Boxes and Beasts of Power' commented on Nigeria's electoral situation. The exhibition was part of YSMA's Object-Based Learning (OBL) initiative, which facilitated forty-six sessions throughout the 2025–2026 academic year, highlighting technique over representation in contemporary African art.
Key facts
- Exhibition 'Tracing Forms: The Art of Making' at Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art, Pan-Atlantic University, from 1 March to 15 July 2026.
- Curated by Charles Udeh, focusing on artistic process over finished works.
- Five thematic sections: pigment and gesture, material experimentation, digital/pixels, ceramics, and materiality in picture-making.
- Artists featured include Eva Obodo, Tony Okpei, Abayomi Barber, George Edozie, Emmanuel Ifoegbuike, Kekere Ekun, Twins Seven-Seven, Nike Okundaye, Babatunde Jide, Kelani Abbas, Anthony Azekwoh, Lawrence Meju, and Chima Anagbado.
- Tony Nsofor's 'Grim Polity: Ballot Boxes and Beasts of Power' (2019) highlighted for its gestural execution and political commentary.
- Exhibition supported 46 Object-Based Learning sessions, including 19 with the School of Science and Technology, in the second semester of 2025–2026.
- Curator Charles Udeh interviewed by Suzette Bell-Roberts for Art Africa magazine.
- Exhibition aimed to broaden understanding of contemporary Nigerian art by foregrounding process.
Entities
Artists
- Charles Udeh
- Eva Obodo
- Tony Okpei
- Abayomi Barber
- George Edozie
- Emmanuel Ifoegbuike
- Kekere Ekun
- Twins Seven-Seven
- Nike Okundaye
- Babatunde Jide
- Kelani Abbas
- Anthony Azekwoh
- Lawrence Meju
- Chima Anagbado
- Tony Nsofor
- Aina Onabolu
- Suzette Bell-Roberts
Institutions
- Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art
- Pan-Atlantic University
- Art Africa magazine
Locations
- Lagos
- Nigeria
- Lekki