African visual artists play an instrumental role in positioning the cultures of the continent before the world.
More interestingly is the crop of young African artists, who are breaking out of the norm and getting global recognition for their art.
Emediong Uduak Uko, a Nigerian medicine and surgery student and a self-taught artist, finds art as a hobby.
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The 19-year-old muralist and mixed-medium artist’s painting of Nigeria’s Afro-juju legend, Lagbaja, dubbed “Lagbaja: The Masked One” has been added to the collection of the Cyprus Modern Art Museum.
She had a keen interest for painting at the tender age of six. She would paint while doing her class work until she was discovered.
The super-talented teenager is a Christian and she is spiritually inspired. According to her, the Bible shaped her imagination and for her paintings, she believes they are revelations from God.
Besides her spiritual inclination which is probably connected to the revelations she gets to paint, she said she also gets inspired by people and other things around her and that enables her to create a mental image that reflects in her paintings.
For Uko, although juggling a science course and her artistic passion together isn’t an easy task she is able to manage her time well so that her medical and artistic career are at equilibrium.
Her painting of “Lagbaja: The Masked One” made her the youngest and first African whose piece has been adopted to the Cyprus museum’s catalog, which houses works dating as far back as 1940s.
In her Instagram post, she wrote: “I’m pleased to announce to the general public that my artwork is now a part of the vast collection of the Cyprus Modern Art Museum!”
She revealed that the piece is dedicated to Lagbaja: “Sir, if you’re reading this, know that you’ve inspired a culture. You’ve created both war and peace with your passion and creativity and that is everything I stand for. This is the least I can do to show appreciation.”
Uko revealed that her painting is now in the possession of Forbes-listed Cypriot businessman, Suat Günsel. She also runs a budding arts company called Asher’s Palette while currently studying in the Near East University of Cyprus.
