Collins Obijiaku’s (b.1995 Kaduna, Nigeria; based in Chicago, IL) elegant portraits of Black men and women gaze directly at the viewer. He uses various materials, often mixing oil, acrylic, and charcoal to achieve soft gradients, seductive texture, and beguiling linework; seen up close, the arrangements of his brushstrokes are almost cartographical in appearance. His subjects vary from close friends and family to strangers, which allows Obijiaku to create intimate records of his home and surrounding community.
Recent exhibitions include Dreaming in Colour, Opera Gallery, London, UK (2026); Collins Obijiaku: Two Boys, 12.26, Dallas, TX (2025); When We See Us: A Century of Black Figuration in Painting, Kunstmuseum Basel, Basel, Switzerland (2024), Center for Fine Arts, Bozar, Brussels, Belgium (2025); Atlantic, Roberts Projects, Los Angeles, CA (2024); and Traces of Me, Luce Gallery, Turin, Italy (2023), among others. He was an artist-in-residence at Black Rock Senegal, a multidisciplinary residency program founded in 2019 by Kehinde Wiley in Dakar, Senegal, from 2020 to 2021.
Collins Obijiaku
Ezinne, 2023
Oil and charcoal on canvas
44.75 x 35.5 in (113.7 x 90.2 cm) framed
Collins Obijiaku
SLO, 2023
Oil and charcoal on paper
39.37 x 27.5 in (100 x 69.9 cm) unframed
44.75 x 32.75 x 2 in (113.7 x 83.2 x 5.1 cm) framed
Collins Obijiaku
Yene I, 2023
Oil and charcoal on linen
70.87 x 51.18 in (180 x 130 cm)
Collins Obijiaku
Aunt Vivian and Coach, 2022
Oil and charcoal on paper
39.37 x 27.56 in (100 x 70 cm)
Collins Obijiaku
Untitled, 2022
Oil and charcoal on paper
39.37 x 27.56 in (100 x 70 cm)
Collins Obijiaku
Untitled (Woman II), 2021
Oil on paper
39.37 x 31.5 in (100 x 80 cm)
Collins Obijiaku
Untitled (Woman I), 2021
Oil on paper
39.37 x 31.5 in (100 x 80 cm)
Collins Obijiaku
Yellow House 4,2021
Oil and charcoal on paper
29 x 21 in (73.7 x 53.3 cm)
Collins Obijiaku
Yellow House 3, 2021
Oil and charcoal on paper
29 x 21 in (73.7 x 53.3 cm)
By Navya Pothamsetty
Collins Obijiaku’s portraits are relatively simple: a profile of a single person against a simple background. Born in the Kaduna region in northern Nigeria, the internationally-exhibited, self- taught artist is now based just north of Abuja—the strategically central capital of the nation. The deceptively simplified surfaces of Obijiaku’s creations belie miles of depth beneath the facade of their sartorial expression, and the identities assumed in their skin complexion. Captivated at first glance, the Obijiaku viewer is invited to observe, on closer inspection, how small differences in clothing, posture, and gaze animate two- dimensional portraits to vivid life.
We are pleased to announce Collins Obijiaku's contribution to the 2022 TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art auction, taking place October 22, 2022
The annual auction is held at The Rachofsky House in Dallas, benefiting two organizations – the Dallas Museum of Art and amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research. Register to bid here. TWO x TWO for AIDS and Art is an annual contemporary art auction held at The Rachofsky House in Dallas, benefiting two organizations—the Dallas Museum of Art and amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research.
For this landmark exhibition, Wiley has invited a selection of contemporary African artists living throughout the world to each produce a self-portrait. Together these portraits will present a new exploration of identity, perception, and self-regard within the global stage through the lens of figuration, exploring notions of perspective, authorship and control within acts of expression that directly address the self. All proceeds benefit Black Rock Senegal, a multidisciplinary artist-in-residence program founded by Kehinde Wiley in Dakar, Senegal. Self-Addressed will open at Jeffrey Deitch gallery in Los Angeles on November 6, 2021.
