Together they explore the foundational themes of his practice such as history, innovation, heritage, and the possibilities of the future.
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Brooklyn’s MoCADA Reopens with Inside Out, Dennis Osadebe's Post-Pop Afro-Surrealist Pandemic Experience
Inside Out is a solo artistic presentation of works by Nigerian multidisciplinary artist Dennis Osadebe that is a participatory experience consisting of a virtual exhibition and “Playful Rebellion,” an interactive game developed by the artist.
MoCaDa
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Osadebe’s work, which premieres at Brooklyn’s Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) creates a pivotal questioning towards where the collective social reckoning against police brutality and white supremacy will take us next. The pieces were created in response to the following questions the artist sought answers: “Does the armor that we wear shield us from public harm or protect us in private spaces?” “Do we recognize ourselves in the performance of those identities?” “Where do we take shelter?” “ Are we strangers at home?” and “What resides in this living testimony teetering between two pandemics, structural racism and COVID-19?”
Whether exploring the arcade-like installation in-person or virtually, Osadebe turns the ordinary lives of his characters into provocative, post-pop technicolor fantasies, where the metaphysical seeps through traditional Nigerian masks donned by each of them. Through this lens, viewers witness Osadebe’s resilient seedlings as they uproot broken systems to birth new ways of living, whether they are in protest or at rest. Osadebe knows this dichotomy all too well and shares our struggle. In his work there is no choice; We must wear the mask – to laugh, to keep from crying, and to survive each moment with radical imagination. In his world, we are the innovators and the makers. We are safe in our knowing that Black life is bright with possibility in spite of the travails of the real world outside. And that even in the mundane, we exist in total splendor. We are magical. We matter.
Brooklyn’s MoCADA Reopens with Inside Out, Dennis Osadebe's Post-Pop Afro-Surrealist Pandemic Experience
Pulse Ghana
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Lagos based Osadebe’s vibrant post-pop style is centered around the idea of reimagining Africa through the use of positive, provocative, and progressive imagery, and narratives, forging a dialogue where tradition meets invention and innovation. By juxtaposing elements of the past alongside the present, while utilizing his Nigerian heritage as a starting point, Osadebe places Africa in the context of the future and its limitless possibilities.
With his characteristic use of flattened planes, minimalist geometric shapes, and bold colors, Osadebe works in what he refers to as a “NEO” visual style, one that is modern, bright, and expressive. Osadebe coined the cultural movement, ‘Neo-Africa’ as a response to deconstruct the limiting, lazy term of ‘African Art’. This encourages people to rebrand tradition in a way that reflects the transforming world.
Inside Out will be on view beginning October 29, 2021 through February 13, 2022.
To schedule an appointment, view the virtual exhibition or form more information, visit:
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Brooklyn’s MoCADA Reopens with Inside Out, Dennis Osadebe's Post-Pop Afro-Surrealist Pandemic Experience
Pulse Ghana
Dennis Osadebe in the News!
When tennis royalty Naomi Osaka guest-edited an issue of Racquet magazine she commissioned Wellbeing, a painting by Osadebe for the cover image.
Naomi and Osadebe's work were subsequently featured by Louis Vuitton on the luxury brand's Instagram page.
"For the cover I chose the Nigerian visual artist Dennis Osadebe. I have a few pieces of his in my house and I think he's awesome"-- Naomi Osaka, Racquet Magazine Guest Editor
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