Ndidi Emefiele

Inspired by Nigeria’s culture of consumption and reuse, Ndidi Emefiele embraces material experimentation: The artist employs paint, pen, textiles, photographic cutouts, and even found objects such as CDs in her richly textured portraits of Black, predominantly female subjects. The Nigerian-born, U.K.-based Emefiele studied painting at Delta State University in Abraka, Nigeria, before pursuing her MFA at London’s Slade School of Art. Her layered, surreal multimedia works capture the everyday particularities of a distinctly feminine, diasporic experience; Emefiele’s settings range from a joyous dance floor to public transit during a morning commute. She has exhibited in Abuja, Lagos, London, Los Angeles, and Johannesburg, and she won first prize in the COJA Art Competition in 2003.