Lakin Ogunbanwo

About
Working at the confluence of fashion photography and classical portraiture, Nigerian photographer Lakin Ogunbanwo creates enigmatic portraits with an erotic and subversive undertone. His subjects exist defiantly in the frame often framed by shadow, drapery and foliage. His use of colour and bold compositions are influenced by the traditions African studio photography although form and silhouette are also key stylistic traits. Central to Ogunbanwo’s artistic investigation, is his desire to document the culture of Lagos; expand the contemporary African visual archive; and portray self-represented African narratives.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria in 1987 Lakin Ogunbanwo studied Law at Babcock University, Nigeria and Buckingham University, England before beginning work as a fashion photographer in 2012.His solo exhibitions include e wá wo mi (2019), We Must Not Be Looking (2017) and Are We Good Enough (2015) at WHATIFTHEWORLD, Cape Town. Currently his work is on exhibition on FACELESS Transforming Identity: Blak/Black Artists from North Australia, Africa and the African Diaspora at Cairs Art Gallery Australia
Group exhibitions and artfairs include Rituals and Performance: Inherent Risk, Lagos Photo Festival, Nigeria; Dey your Lane! BOZAAR, Brussels; Nataal: New African Photography, Red Hook Labs, New York; Sydney Contemporary; Carriage works, NSW, Art x Lagos; The Civic Centre, Lagos; Miart, Milan, Italy; Art Joburg, Johannesburg; Cape Town Artfair and 154 London and Marrakech.
Ogunbanwo has participated in residency programs hosted by the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, 2019 and the Thymi Manyele foundation in Amsterdam 2022 . His work has been placed in many private collections. Public collections include the National Gallery of Victoria, Australia and the Wedge Collection in Toronto, Canada. His work has been featured in the New Yorker Magazine, ID online, Architectural Digest and Vogue Italia. He has been commissioned by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London as part of their Africa Fashion exhibition and Galeries Lafayette in Paris.
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2019 | e wá wo mi - WHATIFTHEWORLD, Cape Town |
2017 | Africa Now, Galleries Lafayette, Paris |
We Must Not Be Looking - WHATIFTHEWORLD, Johannesburg | |
2015 | Are We Good Enough - WHATIFTHEWORLD, Cape Town |
2014 | New Work - WHATIFTHEWORLD, Cape Town |
Muse, Didi Museum, Lagos, Nigeria | |
2013 | Portraits by Lakin Ogunbanwo, Rooke and Van Wyk Gallery, Johannesburg |
Selected Group Exhibitions
2024 | Against the Bias: Unravelling Material Codes, Reservoir x Mount Nelson, Curated by Reservoir Projects, Mount Nelson, A Belmond Hotel, Cape Town |
Significant Other - WHATIFTHEWORLD x Krone | |
2021 | Not Angels or Algorithms, Only Human Error - WHATIFTHEWORLD, Cape Town |
2017 | Sydney Contemporary, Carriageworks, NSW |
2016 | Art x Lagos, The Civic Centre, Lagos |
Rituals and Performance: Inherant Risk, Lagos Photo Festival, Nigeria | |
Dey your Lane!, BOZAAR, Brussels | |
Nataal: New African Photography, Red Hook Labs, New York | |
2015 | Broken English, Tyburn Gallery, London |
2015 Joburg Art Fair - WHATIFTHEWORLD, Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg | |
Afreaka Festival, Meetings Between Contemporary Brazil and Africa, Mario de Andrade Library, São Paulo | |
2014 | Grid Photo Bienalle, Cape Town |
Uncertain Terms - WHATIFTHEWORLD, Cape Town | |
Art14, London, UK | |
2013 | The Human Condition, LagosPhoto Festival, Lagos, Nigeria |
2012 | Spectrum, Lagos Photo Festival, Lagos, Nigeria |
The Mask, Terrakulture Gallery, Nigeria |
Art Fairs
FNB Art Joburg 2023 |
Miart 2022 |
Art Rotterdam 2022 |