Reflections on My First International Exhibition…
This time last year, I had successfully completed and debuted a new body of work at Angels and Muse, a multipurpose exhibition and residency space in Lagos, Nigeria. This opportunity was made possible by Lauren Tate Baeza, curator of African Art at the High Museum and creator of the Lagos-Atlanta Arts Exchange. I was chosen from a short list of folks she had in mind to be a part of foreign exchange concept, that had never been done before in the history of Lagos and Atlanta’s sister city relationship. I also learned that during the opening week of my exhibition, the United States was about to begin its descent into the deepest pits of hell, which unfortunately is just how revolutions begin.
Anyhoo this trip was the launch point for a concept I dreamt up called “GITYUSUMPROTECTION” which would begin my study of protection modalities that we as a civilization had either abandoned, been separated from or were just misinformed about. My thought was that even though here in America we walk around as if we have everything we need to keep ourselves safe, be it firearms, contracts, the homes we live in, job security, etc, we really are not protected at all and the time had come for us to educate ourselves on how to actually fortify ourselves and those we care about. That first week of November in Lagos, riding around in an Uber, there was a talk radio station taking phone calls and quite a few men called in who were happy to hear the results of our election; they like many misinformed people thought somehow Kamala Harris losing would equate to prosperity for them. I wonder what the radio sounds like this week…
My goal upon returning was to begin the process of finishing a film about this residency trip I had written a script for, detailing the process of making that exhibition happen in 3 weeks and sharing the stories of people I had met. Throughout this year, I’ve felt like a slacker because it’s been a lot harder to complete that mission than I hoped, but at this point with all the shit going on in the world, I really don’t think anyone is holding it against me. Shout out to all those who have been able to stay superhuman and maintain consistency in your art and business practices, people need to clap for you every day. In acknowledging my bittersweet failure to deliver, I accepted that sometimes we really do need the time as artists to fully sit with our experiences before we proceed to continue feeding the machine. I’m very fortunate that I get the opportunity to process what to do next, to set up my opportunities properly and to make the best work possible. The truth is, all our next moves must continue to be our best moves. There is no time for wasted, poorly thought-out efforts, especially for the place our art will hold in history at this present time.
My new goal still involves the same components; a film about my time in Lagos and an exhibition stateside that continues the conversation I began having in Lagos. In fact, I can’t act like this year has been a failure when I was able to execute another idea that was ruminating in my mind for a few seasons. My installation REVIVAL became a precursor to the show that I want to do here in Atlanta, featuring a montage of images from my travels to The Continent. While in conversation with Victor Ehikamenor, my gracious host and founder of Angels and Muse, he told me to consider the open space that exists in video art and installation, to really begin exploring the convergence of all the mediums that I have been mastering over the years. With that advice ringing loudly in my mind, I was able to manifest one of the most impactful installations at Atlanta Art Fair this year and will always be very proud of myself for making that moment happen. Perhaps things merely went exactly as planned by the divine powers that be and my hope is that those divine plans will continue to unfold in 2026. As I’ve been sitting with my work and edifying my personal life a new plan has emerged, one that involves multiple solo exhibitions leading up to the stateside debut of GITYUSUMPROTECTION. With these shows I intend to delve deeper into the journey that has brought me to and all up through Atlanta, Lagos and back. I view it all as an emancipation of my archive and the thoughts I have been carrying for nearly 20 years I have been an artist. Aa the final months of this year wind down, I begin my shift from sitting with this work to the creation of many new things I am still very excited to share in 2026….