Alexis Galleries is delighted to present Balance, a solo exhibition of works by Chukwuemeka Michaels Osisiego.

Reflecting on the concept of moderation and stability, the exhibition examines and dialogue with the idea of balance between two extremes; what Aristotle termed “Maintaining the Golden Mean. The Nigerian society is recently filled with unrest, injustice and religious troubles and the artist has gone from his previous themes of spirituality, communication and reproduction among others to present the audience with works that advocate for courage and equilibrium in place of excesses and recklessness.

In this exhibition, large scale colourful wood panels with Uli, Nsibidi and spontaneous motifs from the artist are presented as a continuation of his dedication to wooden exploration. His processes begin with the sourcing of woods from Apapa port, Lagos, where he buys woods from local women who gather packing case woods from containers that transport cars and heavy equipment into Nigeria. He thereafter cut the woods into segments before subjecting them to other processes like burning, blowing, drawing, engraving, priming and painting. He employs Uli, Nsibidi and other African motifs to expatiate, elaborate and deepen the narrative of his pieces.

Balance is a body of work consisting of 8 wood panels that seeks to maintain a stable line between law and order, stillness and movement, dearth and abundance, courage and cowardice, alienation and commitment.

Mathew Oyedele
Curator.