Education
1984 M.F.A., Painting and Drawing., University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
1980 B.A., Fine Art (with First Class Honours), University of Ife, Ile-Ife, Nigeria.
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2021 A Sense of Self, Morton Fine Art, Washington DC, USA
2021 Masked Heads, Skoto Gallery, New York, New York, USA
2019 "Solo Presentation" AKAA - Also Known as Africa, (Sakhile&Me), Paris, France
2019 "Wetin Be Dis?" Sakhile&Me, Frankfurt, Germany
2018 Dialogues with African Art, Skoto Gallery, New York, New York, USA
2018 Dialogues with African Art, Woodstock Birdcliffe Guild's Kleinert/James Center for the Arts, Woodstock, New York
2016 New Portraits, Self in the Global Age, Skoto Gallery, New York, New York, USA
2014 Thinginess and Nothingness, N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, Detroit, Michigan
2011 Ile Ori/Ori Ile (House of the Head/Head of the House), Skoto Gallery, New York, New York,
2006 Body of Water, Skoto Gallery, New York, New York, USA
2003 Accona Gallery, Darmstadt, Germany
2000 Swiss Cottage Gallery, Camden, London, UK
2000 Charlotte Street Gallery, London, UK
2000 Kunst Praxis Dialogue , Frankfurt, Germany
1999 Bilder + Object, DKD, Wiesbaden, Germany
1999. The Horniman Museum, London, UK
1998 Rochester Art Gallery, Rochester, Kent, UK
1998 Kunststation, Kollmitzberg, Austria
1997 Maidstone Gallery, Maidstone, Kent, UK
1997 Galerie Goethe 53, Munich, Germany
1997. Galerie Hartl und Hermenau, Holzkirchen, Germany
1996 Hartgalerie, Germering, Munich, Germany
1994. Kunst Praxis Dialogue, Frankfurt, Germany
1995. Iwalewa-Haus, Bayreuth, Germany
1989. Africa Centre, London, UK
1987. Franco-German Gallery, Lagos, Nigeria
Art Fairs
2022 Art Cologne - Fair, (Sakhile&Me Gallery)
2021 1-54 London, Contemporary African Art Fair, (Sakhile&Me Gallery)
2019 Cologne Art and Design Fair (Sakhile&Me Gallery)
2019 AKAA Art Fair, Paris, France (Sakhile&Me Gallery)
2019 1-54 London, Contemporary African Art Fair, (Sakhile&Me Gallery)
2019 1-54 New York, Contemporary African Art Fair, (De Buck Gallery)
2018 PRIZM Art Fair, Miami, Florida, USA, (Morton Fine Art Gallery)
Selected Group Exhibitions
2023-24 Sundaram Tagore Gallery, London, SENSE OF MATERIALITY
2022 Sundaram Tagore Gallery, NYC - 20+ Celebrating More Than Two Decades of Gallery History, Creativity and Collaboration https://www.sundaramtagore.com/artists/osi-audu
2021 The Dorsky at 20: Reflections at a Milestone, The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, SUNY New Paltz, New York, USA
2021 Migration Stories, Wilmer Jennings Gallery at Kenkeleba, New York, New York, USA, (curated by Tara Sabharwal)
2021 Facing the Unknown: Imagination in the Time of Pandemic, Lightforms Art Center, Hudson, New York, USA
2020 Group Show, Skoto Gallery, New York, USA
2019 Conjuring Wholeness in the Wake of Rupture, De Buck Gallery, New York, NY (curated by Kilolo Luckett)
2019 Summer Exhibition, Skoto Gallery, New York, New York, USA
2019 Wild Joy, Skoto Gallery, New York, New York, USA
2018 August Wilson Center for African American Culture, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA ABSTRACT MINDED: Works by Six Contemporary African Artists; curated by me - Osi Audu, April 27 - July 22,
2018 Visionary: Viewpoints on Africa's Art Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington DC, USA
2018 ABSTRACT MINDED: Works by Six Contemporary African Artists; The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, New Paltz, New York; curated by me - Osi Audu; Opened January 24, 2018, and travelled to the August Wilson Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA in April 2018
2017 Arts of Global Africa (on-going till present date) Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey, USA
2017 ABSTRACT MINDED: Works by Six Contemporary African Artists, N'Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, Detroit, Michigan; (curated by me - Osi Audu); show travelled to The Samuel Dorsky Museum, SUNY New Paltz, New York in January 2018, and the August Wilson Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA in April 2018
2017 HOME: Contemporary African Artists Consider Place & Identity in Our Connected World, Miller Gallery, Otterbein University, Westerterville, Ohio, USA, (curated by Carol Boram-Hays)
2017 UNTITLED, Morton Fine Art Gallery, Washington DC, USA
2015 VENICE BIENNALE - All The World's Futures (Okwui Enwezor), Collateral Event - Frontiers Reimagined - Museo Di Palazzo Grimani, Venice, Italy. Exhibition titled - Frontiers Reimagined, (curated by Sundaram Tagore, and Marius Kwint) - May 6 - November 22, 2015
2015 Crossing Borders, ArtsWestchester Gallery, White Plains, New York, NEA Funded exhibition titled, (curated by Kathleen Reckling)
2014 AFRICAN ORIGINS: 4 Contemporary Artists Born in Africa and Living in the US.Morton Fine Art Gallery, Washington DC, USA
2014 Sainsburys Institute for Art – Emma Jonathan Fund exhibition,UK
2012. Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey (work on permanent display)
2010 AFRICA NOW, Bonhams, New York,
2010 FIFA 2010 FINE ART PROJECT, Cape Town, South Africa
2009 Skoto Gallery, New York.
2007 Wellcome Trust Gallery, London – (work on permanent display)
2006 Body of Evidence, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of African Art
2005 World Museum, Liverpool
2003. Museum of the mind , British Museum, London, UK
2003. Journeys and Destinations, Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of African Art
2002 HEAD ON: Art with the Brain in Mind. Science Museum, London.
1999 African Worlds, (Permanent Exhibition) The Horniman Museum, London, UK
1998 Africa Africa, Tobu Museum, Tokyo, Japan
1998 The Tokushima Modern Art Museum, Japan
1998 Himeji City Museum of Art, Japan
1998 Koriyama City Museum of Art, Japan
1998 Marugame Inokuma-Genichiro Museum of Contemporary Art, Japan
1998 The Museum of Fine Art, Gifu, Japan.
1997 Yoruba Diaspora, October Gallery, London
1997. Diversity in Contemporary African Art. The Ohio State University, USA
1996 An Inside Story: African Art of Our Time, Setagaya Art Museum, Tokyo; a two-year touring exhibition to five cities in Japan:-
1995 GWANNJU BIENNALE, Kwangju, Korea
1994 Yoruba Kunst Heute, Kulturklub des Europaischen Patentamts, Munich, Germany
1995 Seeing and Believing, The Economist Building, London, UK
1992 The Discerning Eye, Mall Galleries, London, UK
1991 Il Sud del Mondo: L’altra arte contemporanea, Galleria Civica Darte Contemporanea, Marsala, Italy
1991 Four x 4 Installation Project, Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Wolverhampton, England
1991 The Green Contemporary Art Sale, Phillips Fine Arts, London, UK
1990 Let the canvas come to life with dark faces. Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, Coventry; South London Gallery, London; Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool; Cartwright Hall, Bradford; Ipswich Museum, Nottingham, UK
1985 Evolutions in Nigerian Art, National Gallery of Modern Art, Lagos, Nigeria
1984 X1th Annual National Juried Art Exhibition, La Grange Gallery of Art, La Grange, Georgia, USA
Museum and Corporate Collections
The National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, USA
The British Museum, London, UK
Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey
The Horniman Museum, London, UK
The Samuel Dorsky Museum of Art, SUNY New Paltz, New York
Mott-Warsh Collection/Gallery, Flint, Michigan
Hood Museum, Dartmouth, New Hampshire
Wellcome Collection/Museum, London
Microsoft Art Collection
Fidelity Investment Corp, Boston, Massachusetts
Sony Classical, New York
Iwalewa-Haus, Universitat Bayreuth, Germany
Alliance Française, Lagos, Nigeria
National Gallery, Lagos, Nigeria
Nigerian High Commission, London
Schmidtbank, Bayreuth, Germany
Addax and Oryx Group, Switzerland
Swiss Embassy, Lagos
Awards, Commissions, Prizes, Scholarships, and Residences
2020 New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship Award
2018 Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant
2018 Art Diagonale III, Art Residency and Symposium, Wels, Austria
2002 Wellcome Trust commission, London
1998 Artist Residency, workshop and exhibition, Kunststation, Kollmitzberg, Austria
1997 South East Arts Grant for a Mural at the Maidstone Libaray Gallery, Maidstone, Kent, England, United Kingdom
1995 Kwangju Biennale, People's Choice Award and trophy
1982 Nigerian Federal Scholarship Award for M.F.A. degree program in Painting and Drawing.
1980 Faculty of Arts prize for outstanding achievement in Fine Arts, University of Ife.
Youtube Videos
2021 Art in Embassies, Digital Series with Osi Audu, produced by The US Department of State https://youtu.be/AmKdFqKvAi0
2020 Osi Audu Instagram Live Studio Visit, July 15, 2020 https://youtu.be/Y-whltPbvbo
Links
2021 Osi Art Apartments, under construction - Detroit, Michigan, USA https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2020/10/15/osi-art- affordable-housing-detroit-woodbridge/3654761001/
Design projects – CD Cover Design
2017 Osi Audu, Study For Graphite Head, 1996 used for CD cover titled Three Fall & Melane - Four by the ACT Jazz label, Germany.
2001 Osi Audu, Magic Box, 2001 used as cover art for ‘THE MAGIC BOX’, John Williams’ CD, SONY CLASSICAL, NEW YORK.
International Conferences and Symposia
2014 ACASA 16th Triennial Symposium on African Art, Brooklyn Museum, New York. I presented a paper titled – After-image: Exploring the Tangible and Intangible through Color.
2001. British Museum, London. The Human Image. Presented a paper titled 'The Body is a Headrest’: another look at the Phenomenon of Consciousness.
1997. University of London, School of Oriental And African Studies, (SOAS) Yoruba Diaspora. Presented a paper titled ‘In search of the Inner Head: Yoruba notion of consciousness and its influence on my art’.
Public Lectures and Artist Talks
2018 Curator of Abstract Minded, Curator/Artist Talk, Samuel Dorsky Museum, New Paltz, NY
2017 Curator of Abstract Minded, Osi Audu in conversation with Laurie Ann Farrell, curator and Head of Contemporary Art at the DIA Detroit, N'Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, Detroit.
2017 Visiting Artist talk, Columbus College of Art and Design, Columbus Ohio; September 18; Canzani Screening Room
2015 Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), Arts and Mind Lecture Series. I presented a paper titled - After-Image: Exploring African Concept of Dualism Through Color, on April 19, 2015, 2:00 pm.
2014 Osi Audu: In Dialogue with Michael Stone-Richards and Addie Langford, N'Namdi Center for Contemporary Art, Detroit. 8/9/2014
2014 School of Art and Art History, University of Florida. Via Skype
2012 Artists in Dialogue: Next Wave Nigeria Newark Museum, Thursday, May 10, 7-8:30 pm
2009 Conversations with a Continent: FIVE AFRICAN ARTISTS. Columbia University, New York, School of International and Public Affairs / African institute (Fall Lecture Series)
2005 Bristol University, (Biannual Public Lecture Series) Presented a paper titled Tradition and Innovation in Yoruba Culture. Explored the concept of asha in the development of style in Yoruba art.
2004 World Museum Liverpool, TALKS AT NATIONAL MUSEUM LIVERPOOL. Gave a talk titled All things are secret. Looked at the notion of Concealment and the Skin of Things, and how my art explores the phenomenon of perception
2002 Science Museum, London, (Naked Science Series of Public Lectures) Presented a paper titled - SEEING THINGS: a look at ways of engaging with an inner image in creativity and schizophrenia. It was a follow-up to the exhibition - HEAD ON
1997 Maidstone Gallery, Maidstone. Gave a talk titled – The Head As Object. Discussed how my works at the exhibition explores some of the visual implications of concepts of the head as the seat of consciousness.
Publications
2010 Mack, John. The Artfulness of Death in Africa. London, UK: Reaktion Books. ISBN 978-1-78914-123-8.
2009 FRAMING CONSCIOUSNESS IN ART: Transcultural Perspectives, Gregory Minissale, pgs 297-298, ISBN-13: 978-9042025813 ISBN-10: 9042025816
2003 MUSEUM OF THE MIND, Mack, John, catalogue of the exhibition, at the British Museum. P.24-25, ISBN-13: 978-0714126371 ISBN-10: 0714126373
2003 THE OXFORD COMPANION TO THE MIND, 2nd Edition, Richard Gregory (editor). ISBN-10: 0198662246 ISBN-13: 978-0198662242; “Yoruba Concept Of The Mind”, Audu, Osi, pgs 953-954
2002 HEAD ON; Exhibition catalogue, Wellcome Trust, London. P.32-37
2000 AFRICA - Arts and Cultures, Mack, John, British Museum Press., pg 28-29, ISBN-10: 0714125482, ISBN-13: 978-0714125480
2000 NEUE KUNST in der SchmidtBank Weiden, Beier, Ulli. ‘Auf der Suche nach dem inneren Kopf…’ p28-37, Verlag fur moderne Kunst Nurnberg. ISBN 3-933096-12-X
1996 ARTODAY, Lucie-Smith, Edward, p. 424-425, ISBN-10: 0714838888 ISBN-13: 978-0714838885
1998 AFRICA-AFRICA, Toshio Shimizu, Catalogue of the exhibition, Tobu Museum Japan
1995 BEYOND THE BORDERS, catalogue - Kwangju Biennale, 1995, pages 90-93, ISBN 89- 7594-149-3
Reviews
2022 Review in Washington Post: (please follow link below , and scroll down to Osi Audu) https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/museums/art-gallery-shows-dc-area/2022/01/06/3a017e14-6cc3-11ec-a5d2-7712163262f0_story.html
2018 https://hudsonvalleyone.com/2018/10/19/osi-audus-work-at-kleinert/
2018 http://oracle.newpaltz.edu/dorsky-museum-welcomes-abstract-minded/
2018 http://www.rollmagazine.com/abstract-minded-works-by-six-contemporary-african- artists-at-the-dorsky/
2017 Glen Mannisto, review of Absrat Minded: Works by Six Contemporary African Artists http://detroitartreview.com/2017/11/abstract-minded-works-by-six-contemporary- african-artists/
2016 R. C, Baker - The VILLAGE VOICE, New York, February 16, 2016
2016 http://wsimag.com/art/19228-osi-audu
2016 http://artdaily.com/news/84344/Exhibition-of-recent-drawings-by-Osi-Audu-opens- atSkoto-Gallery#.Vru03t-YFTG
2016 http://africanah.org/osi-audu/
2016 http://www.skotogallery.com/SPT-0-182 Osi_Audu_New_Portraits_Self_in_the_Global_Age.asd
2006 http://www.artinfo.com/articles/story/21140/osi-audu-at-skoto-gallery-in-ny/
2000 Gaudion, A. ON THE FRINGE REVIEW: Osi Audu, 'tooth fairy tales'
www.newswatch.co.uk/entertainment/theatre/37065 13 October 2000,
1999 Benchemsi, Rajae. L’Afrique au Japon, Royal Air Maroc magazine, No 93, p.30-31
1998 Tanaka, Tanko Asahi Shimbun Journal 9.9.1998
1998 AMBIANTE, Vol 23 Autumn 1998, p.9 Tobu Museum of Art, Tokyo
1998 BT (Art Magazine), October 1998. p.197 Japan
1997 Tapper, Andrea. Africas Kopfe, Munchner Kultur, Nr 103, 6. Mai 1997, p.19
1997 Wirth, Lilo. Kuhle Kopfe – Cool Heads. NIKE New Art In Europe No 57. p.12-13
1996 Wirh, Lilo. ‘Die Reise nach innen’, Munchen Mosaik, Heft2 1996 22Jahrgang p.34 Germany
1990 Burn, Emma. ‘Osi Audu’ , Arts Review, November 2, p592, London
1987 Gure, Joel. ‘The Internatinal Classicist Modernist Artist’. The Herald, March 17, p.13 Nigeria.
1982 Omotunde, Soji. ‘Osi Audu, An Emerging Master Painter’, New Times, Lagos