Left: Unearthed - Sunlight, 2021 Right: Solid Maneuvers, 2015
Otobong Nkanga is a multidisciplinary artist born in 1974 in Kano, Nigeria, and based in Antwerp, Belgium. Her work spans drawing, photography, installation, and performance, exploring the relationships between land, people, and resources. She frequently addresses themes of identity, colonialism, and the impact of environmental degradation, exploring how these factors intersect with cultural memory and societal shifts.
Aging Ruins Dreaming Only to Recall the Hard Chisel from the Past, 2019
Nkanga often investigates how natural resources are extracted, commodified, and their impacts on local communities. One of her notable works, „Carved to Flow“ (2017), connects regions through a soap-making project, symbolizing the interdependence of economies and environments. By focussing on sustainability and craftsmanship she highlights the long-term effects of human labor on society and the planet.
Left: In Pursuit of Bling: The Discovery, 2014 Right: Carved To Flow, 2017–18
Her work also bridges the personal with the political. In „In Pursuit of Bling“ (2014), Nkanga critiques the environmental and social costs of luxury goods, examining how materials are valued through lenses shaped by colonialism and capitalism. By spotlighting these global systems of trade and exploitation, she asks viewers to consider who benefits and who suffers from them.
Installationsansicht von Unearthed – Midnight, 2021
Nkanga frequently collaborates with scientists, historians, and other artists, creating immersive, multi-sensory installations that include sound, spoken word, and physical objects. Her art invites audiences to engage deeply with both its concepts and its material elements and to reflect on the nature of value—how it is created, measured, and distributed. Whether through the beauty of her installations or the poignant messages embedded within them, her art asks us to think more deeply about the interconnectedness of our actions and the planet we inhabit.