Uzo egonu biography samples
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Uzo Egonu
Uzo Egonu was born in in Nigeria and settled in England in His work embodies a post-war artistry that was stylistically cognisant of europeisk modern art while remaining informed by his birthplace. Egonu studied at Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts, remaining linked to his homeland through the West African Students Union. After his graduation in , he travelled widely to places such as Denmark, Finland, Italy and Paris. This likely introduced him to the modernist and avant-garde styles of Europe that can be traced in his work.
Egonu’s paintings recall the aesthetics of Nigeria, such as his paintings’ geometric abstractions and mask-like faces. His strong personal style that recalls his West African heritage was drawn from memory and experience, rather than the colonial artefacts that inspired countless modernist artists associated with movements such as Cubism, Fauvism and Futurism. This arguably accounts for his work’s organic flow, colourat
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Artistic Insight: Layla Gatens is a recent graduate of the University of East Anglia, studying History of Art and Anthropology. Here she explores Uzo Egonu and his work, Portrait of a Guinea Girl.
| Uzo Egonu, Portrait of a Guinea Girl, , Oil on Canvas |
The internationally renowned modern painter, Uzo Egonu, explored the relationship between painting and sculptural forms, fusing his western and non-western influences to evoke a different kind of modernism. Painting at a time when the anti-colonial struggle was gaining momentum, Egonu&#;s work came to negotiate political themes of domination, racism and oppression. No Colour Bar: Black British Art in Action feature&#;s a rare and exciting example of Egonu&#;s figurative work; Portrait of a Guinea Girl ().
Egonu&#;s Portraitof a Guinea Girl () explores the artist&#;s nostalgic feelings towards his homeland, whilst marking a crucial moment in the development of his personal
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Uzo Egonu (Nigerian, )
Woman with a glass of wine
signed and dated 'Uzo Egonu/ 79' (lower right)
oil on canvas
x cm (59 1/4 x 48 1/4in).
Footnotes
Uzo Egonu moved from Nigeria to England in He stayed in the UK, moving to London to study at Camberwell School of Art and later taking evening classes at St Martin's School of Art.
Egonu first explored painting, later taking up printmaking which he took seriously in the late s and early s. Unfortunately printmaking was both his rise and fall. A lack of protective eyewear when etching, which creates seriously harmful fumes, affected the artist's eyesight. Egonu did continued to paint with the present lot being an exceptional example.
Woman with a glass of wine is not only the first of the artist's works as his sight was beginning to fade, but also part of a wider body of work focusing on women in a domestic setting.
Illustrated
O. Oguibe, Uzo Egonu: An African Artist in the West, (London ), p
Bibliography
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