DELETE: Art@Bainbridge | Exhibition Preview: Victor Ekpuk: Language and Lineage
Art@Bainbridge | Exhibition Preview
Victor Ekpuk: Language and Lineage
July 22—October 8, 2023
The Nigerian American artist Victor Ekpuk is internationally renowned for his expressive multimedia works of art inspired by Nsibidi, an ancient system of communication from southern Nigeria and northwest Cameroon that features a rich ideographic script. Using Nsibidi as well as characters borrowed from other cultures and his own vibrant systems of expression, Ekpuk cele-brates the syncretism of multicultural societies.
Victor Ekpuk: Language and Lineage brings together paintings, works on paper, and sculptures that underscore key aspects of his practice as a visual artist, illustrator, commentator, and global citizen. Inspired by the efficiency of Nsibidi in conveying intricate ideas, Ekpuk combines simplicity of form with complexity of interpretation. Building on the portraiture tradition, the artist explores stylized depictions of human heads and masks, in which carefully planned compositions leave space for chance and improvisation in the drawing of the background script. From this dense network of signs, Ekpuk selects forms that will morph into subjects for new works of art. The artist explains, "I excavate my own work to create new work. The background of my works is composed of various forms, and sometimes I go in and take what interests me to create new work." Combining Nsibidi with philosophical reflection, Ekpuk created a version of In Deep Water especially for Art@ Bainbridge. This monumental enlargement on canvas of an earlier drawing invites us to reflect on the importance of memory in defining personal and collective histories. Visitors will also encounter important Pan-African symbols, including Matriarch 2, the confident and proud figure of an ancestral mother who is responsible for giving life and transmitting cultural values. Ekpuk's visual comments on institutional violence and police brutality resonate eloquently with Nigerian Afrobeat musician Fela Kuti's music and lyrics, which can be heard in the gallery.
Annabelle Priestley
Curatorial Assistant
Princeton University Art Museum Summer 2023 Magazine
