Join us on April 22nd for a dialogue with some of the featured artists from THEMUSEUM’s exhibition curated by Karen Carter, Diasporas: Threads Connecting our Origins. This exhibition explores the works of 11 Indigenous Africans of the diaspora or descendants of African Diasporic peoples, commenting on Black Canadian and African diasporic perspectives and understandings of identity in Canada.
Featured artists for the dialogue include Ehiko Odeh, Emmanuel Osahor, and Tabitha Lewis.
Learn more about Diasporas: Threads Connecting our Origins here!
Ehiko Odeh
Ehiko Odeh is a multidisciplinary artist born in Lagos, Nigeria and living in Toronto, Ontario. Art is her spiritual practice fuelled by play, which leads her to material experimentation. She explores decolonization, unraveling spirituality linked to African masks, ethnobotany, sexual violence and memory, representation of Melanated hair, play and family history. Her style is characterized through an expressive palette with the use of a variety of textiles emulating the traditional Nigerian practice of craftsmanship through large scale multimedia paintings, performances, drawings, and installations. Her use of diverse media is a result of a belief that art cannot be interpreted through one form, but rather a range of artistic expression that is the root of many European and western styles. After receiving a BFA with a creative writing minor from OCAD University in 2021, she showcased work in Lagos, Nigeria and Toronto. As a freelance emerging artist, she was a recipient for the The Gladstone House Art Program and public exhibition “between star shine and clay” with Career Launchers at Yonge-Dundas Square. Her work is now part of The Wedge Collection and she has a private gallery of purchased work that can be viewed upon request.
Emmanuel Osahor
Emmanuel Osahor’s practice engages with beauty as a necessity for survival and a precursor to thriving. Through a rigorously playful inquiry into materials and image making processes, his works depict garden spaces as complicated sanctuaries within which manifestations of beauty and care are present. Born in Nigeria, Emmanuel Osahor lives and works in Toronto. He holds an MFA in Studio Art from the University of Guelph (2021) and a BFA in Art and Design from the University of Alberta (2015). His work has been presented in multiple solo and group exhibitions, including at The Art Gallery of Alberta, The Art Gallery of Guelph, SNAP gallery, The Works International Festival of Art and Design, and BAND Gallery. In 2021, he received the Joseph Plaskett award in painting. His work can be found in the collections of the Art Gallery of Ontario, Art Gallery of Guelph, Art Gallery of Alberta, Art Bank of Canada, RBC, and TD Bank. He is an Assistant Professor of Studio Art at the University of Toronto Scarborough.
Tabitha Lewis
Tabitha Lewis is a visual artist, singer, educator, and visionary. She is always excited for creative opportunities to share her work with her community. Tabitha currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Niagara Artist Centre in St. Catharines contributing to the great work of building and nurturing Niagara’s vibrant local artist community. She has been painting and drawing since she was very young and has come to love the limitless and revelatory nature of the creative process. Today, she counts herself blessed to have opportunities to still be expressive in this way.