Abe Odedina: Under The Influence

We are happy to announce Under the Influence — a special Project Room installation by Abe Odedina (b. 1960, Ibadan, Nigeria), his first show in Los Angeles.  The exhibition of paintings will open Tuesday, February 15th and will be on view through March 12, 2022. 

Odedina is a Nigerian-British painter who is based in London and Bahia, Brazil. Under The Influence will present a suite of eight paintings — both portraits and still lifes. Painting on plywood board rather than canvas, Odedina’s compositions embody all the solidity — and practicality — of shop fronts or municipal murals. He offers us a vivid palette with a formal nod to Renaissance portraiture.  His figural paintings are highly legible allegorical vernacular.  Inspired by the rich figurative and oral traditions of African art, infused with a trace of magical realism, his practice seeks to revive and deconstruct quintessential classical themes spanning from ancient Greek to Yoruba mythologies to create a charged dialogue between epochs, cultures, and peoples.