Celebrating Nigerian Art: 16 Nigerian Artists Featured at 2025 Cape Town Art Fair

The 12th edition of the upcoming Investec Cape Town Art Fair, scheduled to take place from 21 to 23 February 2025 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC), will highlight the work of 16 talented Nigerian artists, including Joy Adeboye, Bubu (Oritsegbubemi) Ogisi and and Ayoola Gbolahan.

The Investec Cape Town Art Fair remains the largest contemporary art fair on the African continent, showcasing 124 exhibitors from across the globe, including leading galleries from Europe and the US specialising in contemporary art. Drawing over 30,000 art collectors and enthusiasts each year, the fair highlights the best contemporary art from Africa and around the world. The 2025 edition will feature 30 first-time exhibitors, the largest group of new galleries in the event's history. 

Notably, this year’s fair will also include a significant representation from Nigeria, with Nigerian artists making up the largest group of African participants outside of the host country. The lineup of Nigerian artists includes Ayotunde Ojo (Southern Guild), Azuka Muoh (Christopher Moller Gallery), Diana Ejaita (kó), Eva Obodo (Art Formes), Ngozi-Omeje Ezema (kó), Olamide Ogunade (Christopher Moller Gallery), Ozioma Onuzulike (kó), ruby onyinyechi amanze (Goodman Gallery), Ruth Ige (Stevenson), Sanjo Lawal (THIS IS NOT A WHITE CUBE), Talut Kareem (THK Gallery), Tofo Bardi (kó) and Wole Lagunju (EBONY/CURATED).

Tomorrows/Today

Nigerian artist Joy Adeboye, from AMG Projects,  is among the twelve talented creatives featured in the Tomorrows/Today section of the Investec Cape Town Art Fair. Curated by Dr. Mariella Franzoni under the theme Experience, Attempt, Experiment, this section showcases a diverse group of artists pushing the boundaries of contemporary art. The selected works—spanning textiles, photography, and painting—explore themes of identity, socio-political commentary, and cultural exchange. 

“I find Joy Adeboye’s use of watercolour as her primary medium both bold and deeply inspiring,” says Dr. Franzoni. “She is carving her own path within the contemporary revival of this technique — a medium with a history that stretches back to the origins of art itself and that a few contemporary artists, from Carol Rama and Francesco Clemente to Barthélémy Toguo, have reinterpreted as a means of navigating the ambiguous space between reality, the fantastic and political utopia. Her practice extends this lineage while shaping a language of her own."

Tomorrows/Today was started as a special project at the fair in 2016 and features talent from across the globe. “The Tomorrows/Today section at Investec Cape Town Art Fair is a space for forecasting the leading names of the future. But it’s also a platform for amplifying the voices, ideas and themes that are already emerging among these artists. Looking at what emerging artists are doing today offers us a glimpse into the practices, themes and modes of working that will define the future art scene,” says Dr Franzoni, Curator. According to Franzoni, Tomorrows/Today remains the most international section of the fair and this dynamic intersection of local and global perspectives is what makes it so exciting for her.

An added highlight of Tomorrows/Today is its cash prize of R80 000, sponsored by Fiera Milano Exhibitions Africa and awarded by a panel of art professionals to the participating artist with the highest quality presentation during the fair. Wim Pijbes, Netherlands (Art Historian), Azu Nwagbogu, Nigeria (Curator) and Gabriel Virgilio Luciani, USA (Curator) have been announced as this year' s jury. 

Nigerian artists to shine in Generations section

The Generations section of the Investec Cape Town Art Fair will feature Nigerian artists Bubu (Oritsegbubemi) Ogisi (16/16) and Ayoola Gbolahan (AMG Projects), as part of a curated space that fosters intergenerational conversations between both emerging and established artists from around the world. Curated by Heba El Kayal, a Cairo-based curator, writer and researcher specialising in modern and contemporary art from the Middle East and North Africa, the section highlights the importance of collaboration across time and space. 

The Generations section prioritises the need for artists to come together, share ideas, and engage with their communities and the world using innovative practices. It invites exploration of the question: if play is the language of children, expressed with innate fluency, how do adults lose this fluidity and with it, the ability to engage with the world in a light-hearted, dynamic way?

The West African country of Benin, Nigeria’s neighbor, is represented at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair by artists Dominique Zinkpè and Meschac Gaba. Beninese artist Thierry Oussou is also participating in the second Stellenbosch Triennale, which runs from 19 February to 30 April 2025, coinciding with the Fair. The Triennale serves as a platform for public art to engage critically with society, featuring an evolving programme of sound, sculpture, installations, photography, dance and more. Curated by Khanyisile Mbongwa, the 2025 theme BA’ZINZILE: A Rehearsal for Breathing explores breathing as both a vital act and a metaphor for resilience and survival.

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