Alex Nwokolo's 'Now and Beyond' celebrates resilient art periods

 

'Heir Apparent-2' by Alex Nwokolo.

THE  robustness of art appreciation rests on the pedestal of rich provenance, which takes off from the studio of artists, across generations. Alex Nwokolo is among such artists whose works are  depository of rich provenance within the context of periods.

This much continues as Nwokolo embarks on his solo art exhibition titled Now and Beyond, opening to the public, live, from Saturday, October 30-November 12, 2021, 3-6pm, at Alexis Galleries, 282, Akin Olugbade Street, Victoria Island, Lagos. As the exhibition runs daily from 10 am-6 pm, after the opening day, it is also available virtually on Instagram- alexisgalleries, Facebook- Thehomestores & Alexisgalleries     

For over three decades,  Nwokolo's canvas has been consistently enriching art appreciation, within Africa and the diaspora as his palette and  brushstrokes keep escalating fussion of modern and contemporary styles. From leaving the common terrain of regular paintings to creating identity in crowd-effect technique as well as translating some of his themes into mixed media of soft metal,   Nwokolo has established his signature in the optics of contemporaneity.

The current state of Nwokolo's work, which  coaleseces parts of his past techniques with fresh textures as well as a peep into his future, has generated Now and Beyond.  In one of the works titled 7 High Street (Oil on textured canvas, 44.5x41.5 inches, 2021), the resilience  of Nwokolo's  crowd-effect technique emits a balance between shade and light.

Perhaps a  view into the artist's next period comes in Untitled-4 (mxed media, 76x76 inches, 2021).  It's an abstraction simplified and texturised, but bold in the twin imageries of duality theme. 

Nwokolo's 'Oju' (Face) period has proven to be as resilient as the artist's  crowd-effect era. Again, 'Oju' gets more exciting in this current exhibition with a piece titled Heir Apparent-2.

In its Gallery Statement, Alexis described  Nwokolo as an artist who works in a wide range of materials and styles, cutting "an edge for himself in the art scenes." The gallery explained that Now and Beyond "narrates" the progression in Nwokolo's "unapologetic styles and technique, but most importantly pointing to the direction where creativity abounds." 

The gallery is in partnership with Child Life- Line, a not-for-profit organization that helps children living rough on the streets of Lagos. Child Life-Line seeks to reconnect the street children with family and get them back into school or vocational training, the galley said.  Parts of the exhibition proceeds, Alexis assured, go to the course of Child Life- Line.

The exhibition, Alexis disclosed, is sponsored by Pepsi, Tiger, Indomie, Mokano, The Gurdian,  Wazobia TV, Cool FM, UPS, Haier  Thermocool, Cobranet, Delta Airlines, Aina Blankson, The Homeatores, Art Café, Lost  In A City and AMG Logistics.