Ehikhamenor is a multi-faceted artist whose practice encompasses painting, drawing, photography, sculpture and installation, as well as unique perforated works on paper. Hailing from Udomi Uwessan in Edo State, Nigeria, the historic seat of the Benin Empire, he draws inspiration from the dual aesthetic and spiritual traditions which infused his upbringing, using imagery and symbolism from both Edo traditional religion and Catholicism. His signature patterning is a frenetic mélange of gestural abstraction and stylised forms revealing faces, objects and writing systems. This patterning is used in everything from paintings to photographs to immersive installations, producing a hypnotic experience, a sense of both meditative repetition and an ongoing narrative being told.
Storytelling is an important element of the artist's practice, whether the magic realism of memory and nostalgia, or biting criticism of history and politics. Ehikhamenor is also a published writer of both fiction and non-fiction, and has worked on projects in fields as diverse as journalism, fashion and arts-based activism. He has received numerous awards for both his writing and art, as well as fellowships from organisations such as the Rockefeller Foundation (USA, 2016), the Nirox Foundation (South Africa, 2016) and the Norman Mailer Centre (USA, 2014).
His work has also been in included in numerous group exhibitions and biennales, including the 5th Mediations Biennale in Poznan, Poland (2016), the 12th Dak'art Biennale in Dakar, Senegal (2016), 'Humanity Today', a multi artist exhibition by the Jenkins Johnson Gallery, San Francisco (2017), Biennale Jogja XIII, Indonesia (2015), as well as being shown at the 56th Venice Biennale as part of the German Pavilion (2015).
In 2017, he will be one of four artists to exhibit as part of the first Nigerian Pavilion at the 57th Venice Biennale.
