Wetin Be Dis?


Wetin Be Dis? shows a series of abstract acrylic paintings and paper and graphite drawings stretched on canvas by Osi Audu whose work explores the tangible and intangible nature of "the self" and self-consciousness. The exhibition will run from 19 September to 26 October with a forthcoming catalogue that includes an essay by Professor Jack Mack FBA, an interview with the artist and photographs of all the works in the exhibition.

Audu's practice over the last three decades has elevated abstract art through his geometric acrylic paintings in primary colors and monochromatic grey and black drawings. Audu interrogates the duality of form/void and the tangible/intangible as they relate to the self and self-consciousness. Following the Yoruba concept of Ori Inu ("the inner head"), Audu's works - many of them displayed as "self-portraits" - draw attention to the artist's focus on the head as a signifier of consciousness and as an object of self-knowing.

Wetin Be Dis? is Nigerian Pidgin English for "What is this?" and in the exhibition Audu develops a series of abstract geometric paintings and drawings to raise questions about the dual and oft-time multifaceted nature of "the self." Referencing both philosophy and neurology, he tugs at our understandings and perceptions of "self-identity." The paintings are brightly colored and often shaped with an opening breaking the center of the solid forms with the black-and-white drawings depicting similar geometric shapes but also more experimental variations including curvature and smaller repeating forms creating impressions of a starry night sky.

Audu received his MFA in Painting and Drawing from the University of Georgia in Athens (USA) in 1984 and a postgraduate-certificate in education from the University of Kent in Canterbury (UK) in 1994. Audu's work has shown in several prestigious institutions such as Iwalewa-Haus, Bayreuth (1995), the British Museum, London (2003), the Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of African Art, Washington D.C. (2006) and the Museo Di Palazzo Grimani during the Venice Biennale (2015). He lives and works in New York.


Works


Osi Audu: The Night is Bright with Stars

The Night is Bright with Stars

Osi Audu

1998

Pastel on paper

22 x 30 in | 56 x 76.2 cm

Osi Audu: Tubular Head

Tubular Head

Osi Audu

1998

Graphite and pastel on paper

30 x 22 in | 76.2 x 56 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Dogon Bird Mask

Self-Portrait after Dogon Bird Mask

Osi Audu

2018

Acrylic on canvas

11 x 15 in | 28 x 38 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Dogon Bird Mask

Self-Portrait after Dogon Bird Mask

Osi Audu

2018

Acrylic on canvas

22 x 31 in | 56 x 78.8 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Gelede Headdress

Self-Portrait after Gelede Headdress

Osi Audu

2018

Acrylic on canvas

22 x 31 in | 56 x 78.8 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait with Egungun Hairstyle

Self-Portrait with Egungun Hairstyle

Osi Audu

2018

Graphite and pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

22 x 31 in | 56 x 78.8 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait, The Bearded II

Self-Portrait, The Bearded II

Osi Audu

2018

Graphite and pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

22 x 31 in | 56 x 78.8 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait, Yoruba Head

Self-Portrait, Yoruba Head

Osi Audu

2018

Acrylic on canvas

22 x 31 in | 56 x 78.8 cm

Osi Audu: Double Self-Portrait, after Ere Ibeji Twins

Double Self-Portrait, after Ere Ibeji Twins

Osi Audu

2019

Graphite and pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

15 x 30 in | 38 x 76.2 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Akua'ba Doll

Self-Portrait after Akua'ba Doll

Osi Audu

2019

Graphite and pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

11 x 15 in | 28 x 38 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after BaKuba Mask

Self-Portrait after BaKuba Mask

Osi Audu

2019

Acrylic on canvas

15 x 22 in | 38 x 56 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Dogon Bird Mask

Self-Portrait after Dogon Bird Mask

Osi Audu

2019

Graphite and pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

11 x 15 in | 28 x 38 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Osanyin

Self-Portrait after Osanyin

Osi Audu

2019

Acrylic on canvas

15 x 22 in | 38 x 56 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Tabwa Head

Self-Portrait after Tabwa Head

Osi Audu

2019

Graphite and pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

11 x 15 in | 28 x 38 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Tabwa Head

Self-Portrait after Tabwa Head

Osi Audu

2019

Acrylic on canvas

12 x 22 in | 30.5 x 56 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait, Untitled

Self-Portrait, Untitled

Osi Audu

2019

Graphite and pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

11 x 15 in | 28 x 38 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait with Egungun Hairstyle

Self-Portrait with Egungun Hairstyle

Osi Audu

2019

Acrylic on canvas

48 x 60 in | 122 x 152.5 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait after Egungun Headdress

Self-Portrait after Egungun Headdress

Osi Audu

2019

Graphite and pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

15 x 22 in | 38 x 56 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait with Yoruba Hairstyle

Self-Portrait with Yoruba Hairstyle

Osi Audu

2019

Acrylic on canvas

48 x 60 in | 122 x 152.5 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait, Red Cap Chief II

Self-Portrait, Red Cap Chief II

Osi Audu

2019

Acrylic on canvas

48 x 60 in | 122 x 152.5 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait, Red Cap Chief III

Self-Portrait, Red Cap Chief III

Osi Audu

2019

Acrylic on canvas

11 x 15 in | 28 x 38 cm

Osi Audu: Self-Portrait, The Bearded

Self-Portrait, The Bearded

Osi Audu

2019

Acrylic on canvas

11 x 15 in | 28 x 38 cm

Osi Audu: The Night is Bright with Stars I

The Night is Bright with Stars I

Osi Audu

2019

Pastel on paper

22 x 30 in | 56 x 76.2 cm

Osi Audu: The Night is Bright with Stars II

The Night is Bright with Stars II

Osi Audu

2019

Pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

11 x 15 in | 28 x 38 cm

Osi Audu: The Night is Bright with Stars III

The Night is Bright with Stars III

Osi Audu

2019

Pastel on paper (mounted on canvas)

22 x 31 in | 56 x 78.8 cm