Kingsley Onyeiwu: RECONCILIATION

December 07 - January 12,2025

From Hooks-Epstein Galleries: "The artwork of Kingsley Onyeiwu unites traditional and contemporary aesthetics. Onyeiwu grew up in Lagos, Nigeria, where he was surrounded by the knowledge and culture of the Igbo. His admiration of figurative works of art, as well as a deep appreciation for the techniques of the old masters, is projected into a metamodernist’s vision, which is centered on the confluence of both, Western influence and the expansion of the African diaspora. The reoccurring motif of women subjects in his works serves as a visual representation of the spiritual role that women of the diaspora possess as keepers of the culture and heritage, as is the belief and practice in Igboland. Being a proponent of the Afropolitan philosophy and having migrated to Houston, Texas as a teenager, Onyeiwu sees himself as an expatriate of Nigeria. His exposure to the multicultural human experience, relationships, and rituals has helped redefine his existence, far removed from the outdated Western ideologies of what Africans are in a metamodern society. With his latest body of work, RECONCILIATION, Kingsley Onyeiwu seeks to have a dialogue with society by creating iconographies, which embody multiculturalism and spiritual awakening, using numerous experienced rituals that draw a parallel to post-colonial conversation on Afropolitanism. Kingsley Onyeiwu (b. 1992) received his B.A. from Texas Southern University (TSU), where he was influenced by the works of Dr. John Biggers, Leamon Green, Kermit Oliver, and Robert Pruitt. In 2018, he earned an M.A. in Painting from Houston Baptist University (now HCU), where he cultivated a deeper understanding of the philosophy around his works, while expounding on ideas beyond the layers of portraiture. Very recently, Onyeiwu had a solo exhibition at the Beeville Art Museum (Beeville, TX) from September 7 – November 23, 2024. Upcoming in Summer 2025, he will have a solo exhibition at the Galveston Arts Center (Galveston, TX). Kingsley Onyeiwu resides in Houston, where he currently teaches in the Fine Arts Department at TSU."

Artist talk: December 28, 2024 | 1-3 pm

Hooks-Epstein Galleries 2631 Colquitt Street
Houston, TX 77098
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