ART X Lagos is an

art fair Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

, Nigeria. It is the leading international art fair in

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

, founded and launched in 2016, and eight editions have been held so far. The tenth edition of the fair will take place between 6 - 9 November 2025.

Founding and character

ART X Lagos was created in 2016 by Tokini Peterside-Schwebig, a Nigerian entrepreneur and art collector, to showcase and support the breadth of contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora. It draws local patrons and a host of international collectors, curators, and critics annually. ART X Lagos is a four-day affair, featuring art galleries in Africa and the Diaspora showcasing established as well as emerging artists. The fair also includes a talks programme, ART X Talks, featuring local and international speakers, as well as special projects to engage its varied audiences, and live art and music performances at ART X Live! and a newly introduced screening programme, known as ART X Cinema. In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ART X Lagos was held as an online art fair. ART X Lagos returned with a physical fair in 2021, the first in-person fair in Africa since the

pandemic A pandemic ( ) is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has a sudden increase in cases and spreads across a large region, for instance multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial number of individuals. Widespread endemic (epi ...

struck. Following the success of the 2023 fair, preparations began in earnest for the 2024 fair, which took place between 31 October - 3 November 2024.

First edition

The first edition of ART X Lagos was held from 4 - 6 November 2016. It showcased contemporary art by more than 60 established and emerging artists with participating galleries from 10 countries in Africa, including Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana and Mali, and was artistically directed by

Bisi Silva Bisi Silva (Olabisi Obafunke Silva) (29 May 1962 – 12 February 2019) was a Nigerian contemporary art curator based in Lagos. Early life and education Bisi Silva graduated with an MA in Visual Arts Administration: Curating and Commissioning ...

. The debut fair welcomed thousands of visitors from around Nigeria and the world. Notable artists who exhibited at the first edition include

William Kentridge William Kentridge (born 28 April 1955) is a South African artist best known for his prints, drawings, and animated films. He is especially noted for a sequence of hand-drawn animated films he produced during the 1990s, constructed by filming ...

, Barthelemy Togou, Sokari Douglas-Camp, Ghana Amer, Victor Ehikhamenor, Gerald Chukwuma,

Amadou Sanogo Amadou Haya Sanogo (born 1972 or 1973) is a Malian military officer who was leader of the 2012 Malian coup d'état against President Amadou Toumani Touré. He proclaimed himself the leader of the National Committee for Recovering Democracy and R ...

, Owusu Ankomah, Jeremiah Quarshie, and Obiageli Okigbo among others. Speakers at ART X Talks included

El Anatsui El Anatsui (; born 4 February 1944) is a Ghanaian sculptor active for much of his career in Nigeria. He has drawn particular international attention for his "Bottle cap, bottle-top installations". These installations consist of thousands of Alum ...

Bruce Onobrakpeya Bruce Obomeyoma Onobrakpeya (born 30 August 1932) is a Nigerian printmaker, painter and sculptor. He has exhibited at the Tate Modern in London, the National Museum of African Art of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and the Mal ...

, Prince Yemisi Shyllon, and

Zoé Whitley Zoé Whitley (born 30 December 1979) is an American art historian and curator. Between 2020 and March 2025, Whitley directed Chisenhale Gallery. Based in London, she has held curatorial positions at the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Tate galle ...

Second edition

The second edition was held from 3 - 5 November 2017 and welcomed thousands of visitors to see the works of artists from more than 15 countries across Africa. The fair featured galleries from Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Senegal, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mali and the United Kingdom. Notable artists included

Yinka Shonibare Yinka Shonibare (born 9 August 1962), is a British artist living in the United Kingdom. His work explores cultural identity, colonialism and post-colonialism within the contemporary context of globalisation. A hallmark of his art is the bright ...

(MBE),

Zanele Muholi Zanele Muholi (born 1972) is a South African artist and visual activist working in photography, video, and installation. Muholi's work focuses on race, gender and sexuality with a body of work that dates back to the early 2000s, documenting and ...

, Modupeola Fadugba,

Nandipha Mntambo Nandipha Mntambo (born 1982) is a South African artist who has become famous for her sculptures, videos and photographs that focus on human female body and identity by using natural, organic materials. Her art style has been self described as ecl ...

, Virginia Chihota, Boris Nzebo,

Babatunde Olatunji Michael Babatunde Olatunji (April 7, 1927 – April 6, 2003) was a Nigerian drummer, educator, social activist, and recording artist. Early life Olatunji was born in the village of Ajido, near Badagry, Lagos State, in southwestern Nig ...

, Pamela Phatsimo Sunstrum, Portia Zvavahera and Lakin Ogunbanwo among others. The fair also included special project exhibitions by solo artists, curated by Missla Libsekal, notable among which was an exhibition of seven life-sized wooden sculptures by Nigeria's pioneer modernist

Ben Enwonwu Odinigwe Benedict Chukwukadibia Enwonwu MBE (14 July 1917 – 5 February 1994), better known as Ben Enwonwu, was a Nigerian painter and sculptor. Arguably the most influential African artist of the 20th century, his pioneering career opened th ...

, to commemorate his centenary. Speakers at ART X Talks included

Njideka Akunyili Crosby Njideka Akunyili Crosby (born 1983) is a Nigerian-born visual artist working in Los Angeles, California. Through her art, Akunyili Crosby "negotiates the cultural terrain between her adopted home in America and her native Nigeria, creating collag ...

Lemi Ghariokwu Lemi Ghariokwu (born Emmanuel Sunday; 26 December 1955), also known simply as Lemi, is a Nigerian painter, illustrator and designer who is most renowned for providing many of the original cover images for the recordings of Nigerian musician Fela K ...

, Peju Alatise, Stacy Hardy and Wura-Natasha Ogunji.

Third edition

The third edition was held from 2 - 4 November 2018. For the first time, the fair featured East African artists and exhibitors, from countries such as Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia. A key highlight of the 2018 fair was a special exhibition by

CBE, exploring his career highlights, curated by Missla Libsekal. Ben Enwonwu's masterpiece "Tutu" (1974), the highest selling African artwork at auction at the time, was also exhibited at the fair, its first public showcase in Lagos in more than 40 years. Other notable artists included Cyrus Kabiru,

Sokari Douglas Camp Sokari Douglas Camp CBE (born 1958 in Nigeria) is a London-based artist who has had exhibitions all over the world and was the recipient of a bursary from the Henry Moore Foundation. She was honoured as a Commander of the Order of the British ...

CBE,

, Paul Onditi, Victor Butler,

Nike Davies-Okundaye Chief Nike Davies-Okundaye (born 1951), also known as Nike Okundaye, Nike Twins Seven Seven and Nike Olaniyi, is a Nigerian Yoruba and adire textile designer. She is best known as an artist for her cloth work and embroidery pieces. Early li ...

, Tadesse Mesfin, and Aboudia, among others. Speakers at ART X Talks, included

CBE, Chika Okeke-Agulu, Aboubakar Fofana, Peju Layiwola, HRM Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, and Meskerem Assegued.

Fourth edition

The fourth edition was held from 1 - 3 November 2019, and welcomed visitors from across the world, with more than 90 artists exhibited from 25 countries. The 2019 edition saw the introduction of ART X Modern, a section of the fair dedicated to pioneers of African modern art from the mid-20th century, as well as a Performance Pavilion, featuring three performance works over the weekend. A key highlight of the 2019 fair was ART X Talks, which featured a keynote address from

Wangechi Mutu Wangechi Mutu (born 1972) is a Kenyan American visual artist, known primarily for her painting, sculpture, film, and performance work.

. Other notable speakers included

Emeka Ogboh Emeka Ogboh (born May 14, 1977) is a Nigerian sound and installation artist best known for his soundscapes of life in Lagos. Trained as an artist, he began working with sounds that characterize cities following an Egyptian multimedia art progr ...

, N'Goné Fall, Kathryn Weir, Joel Benson and Reni Folawiyo.

Yusuf Grillo Yusuf Grillo (16 December 1934 – 23 August 2021) was a Nigerian contemporary painter, muralist and sculptor, known for his inventive works and the prominence of the color blue in many of his paintings. He was the founding president of the Socie ...

, Ablade Glover, Joy Labinjo, Sam Nhlengethwa,

Nelson Makamo Nelson Makamo (February 1982) is a South African contemporary visual artist known for portraits often depicting rural South African children. Makamo has exhibited his work internationally, with notable solo shows in cities like Los Angeles, Paris, L ...

, Titza Berhanu, Jems Koko Bi,

Demas Nwoko Demas Nwoko (born 1935) is a Nigerian artist, protean#Cultural references, protean designer, architect and master builder. In the 1960s, he was a member of the Mbari club of Ibadan, a committee of burgeoning Nigerian and foreign artists. He wa ...

, Lady Skollie, and

Uche Okeke Christopher Uchefuna Okeke (; April 30, 1933 – January 5, 2016), also known as Uche Okeke (), was an illustrator, painter, sculptor, and teacher. He was an art and aesthetic theorist, seminal to Nigerian modernism. Background Christopher Uche ...

were among the notable artists exhibited in this edition. The fair featured a range of curated projects including the work of

, curated by Tayo Ogunbiyi, as well as three performance pieces curated by Wura-Natasha Ogunji.

Fifth edition

The fifth edition was held from 2 - 9 December 2020. It was presented as an online-only art fair on the relaunched ARTXLAGOS.COM and was bolstered by an extensive virtual program of 13 events. The 2020 edition saw the presentation of ''New Nigeria Studios'', an online exhibition that showcased the stories of select photographers and filmmakers who took to the streets of Nigeria in protest in October 2020, as well as ART X Review - The Wrap Up with

, a masterclass for emerging artists discussing the growth, place and potential of the artist in today's world. A key highlight of the 2020 fair was ART X Talks, which featured artist

Hank Willis Thomas Hank Willis Thomas (born 1976) is an American conceptual artist. Based in Brooklyn, New York, he works primarily with themes related to identity, history, and popular culture. Early life and education Hank Willis Thomas was born in 1976 in P ...

and

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, co-founder of

Black Lives Matter Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a Decentralization, decentralized political and social movement that aims to highlight racism, discrimination and Racial inequality in the United States, racial inequality experienced by black people, and to pro ...

. Other notable speakers included Folarin "Falz" Falana, Lola Ogunnaike, Freda Isingoma,

Yagazie Emezi Yagazie Emezi (born March 2, 1989) is a Nigerian artist and self-taught independent photojournalist based in Lagos, Nigeria. Early life Emezi, a native of Old Umuahia in Umuahia South, Abia State, was born March 2, 1989, and raised in Aba, Ni ...

and Kelechi Amadi-Obi. The exhibiting artists included

Ouattara Watts Ouattara Watts (born May 27, 1957) is an Ivory Coast-born American visual artist, known for his multimedia paintings that incorporate African and Western aesthetics and depict themes of spirituality and modernity. His work has been exhibited in re ...

, Aboudia, Ben Osawe, François-Xavier Gbré, Ablade Glover, Nike Okundaye Davies, Boris Nzebo, Abe Odedina, Angele Etoundi Essamba, Olu Ajayi, Wole Lagunju and Tiffanie Delune among others. The fair's programme also featured ART X Live! which presented the short performance film "Like Someone's Watching", a special project titled the Graveyard of Ideas, "40 Minutes with…", a series of conversations with the fair's exhibiting galleries across their various locations.

Sixth edition

The sixth edition was held from 4 - 7 November 2021 at The Federal Palace Lagos, and extended online until 21 November at ARTXLAGOS.COM. It welcomed 30 leading galleries, presenting artworks by 120 artists from Africa and its diaspora. It featured a range of curated projects, including "Future Africa" and "Unfolding Layers of Time" curated by Aude Christel Mgba, and an interactive project "We Are Here" curated by AWCA. ART X Talks featured critically acclaimed speakers including a conversation in collaboration with the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art. Notable speakers included Prince Yemisi Shyllon, Kavita Chellaram, Osinachi, Hakeem Adedeji, Bonaventure Soh Bejeng Ndikung, Kelani Abass, Emmanuel Iduma and

Nengi Omuku Nengi Omuku (born August 9, 1987 in Warri, Nigeria) is a Nigerian creative artist, sculptor and painter. Omuku is a visual artist known for her passionate paintings that explore themes of identity, mental journeying, and mutual belonging. Her wo ...

. Key highlights of the 2021 fair included "Reloading…", an NFT exhibition featuring 10 of Africa's most exciting digital artists in collaboration with SuperRare, curated by Africa's foremost crypto-artist Osinachi, and Maurice Chapot and Ayo Lawson In addition, a special presentation, "Art of Yusuf Grillo", was curated by kó in celebration of the life and legacy of acclaimed Nigerian artist

. Exhibiting artists at the fair included

Amoako Boafo Thomas Amoako Boafo, known as Amoako Boafo (born 10 May 1984), is a Ghanaian painter and visual artist. Early life and education Boafo was born and raised in Osu, in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. He attended the Ghanatta College of Art and ...

, Aboudia, J.D. 'Okhai Ojeikere,

Mous Lamrabat Moustapha "Mous" Lamrabat (born 1983) is a Moroccan-born Belgian photographer, of Moroccan descent, identifying als Flemish-Moroccan. He is known for both fashion photography under Studio Mousmous, and fine art photography. Biography Lamrabat ...

Benji Reid Benji Reid (born 1966) is a British photographer, visual theatre maker, and educator. His work focuses on the intersection of race, nationhood, and gender with particular attention to the Black British experience, Black masculinity, and mental h ...

, Nike Okundaye Davies, Joana Choumali, Boris Nzebo, Anjel (Boris Anje), Dmitri Fagbouhoun, among others.

Seventh Edition

The seventh edition was held from 4 - 6 November 2022 at The Federal Palace, Lagos and featured 31 galleries presenting over 120 artists from across Africa and its Diaspora, with a virtual exhibition on Artsy. The special projects at the fair spoke distinctly to the theme "''Who Will Gather Under The Baobab Tree?''" while highlighting experimental mediums and the multidisciplinary artists working in them. Featured artists and commissioned projects included Victor Ehikhamenor's sculptural installation "Ulin-Noifo, The Lineage That Never Ends", Linda Dounia's digital exhibition "Once Upon A Garden", "The conversation we must have" by Matthew Eguavoen, and a special performance by

Ranti Bam Ranti Bam (born 1982) is a British-Nigerian artist from London and Lagos known for her colourful and sculptural ceramics works made with a variety of clay techniques. Early life and education Ranti Bam was born in Lagos, Nigeria and raised ...

titled "Sowing Seeds in Hearthland". Other presenting artists included Angèle Etoundi Essamba, Anthony Nsofor, Carl-Edouard Keïta, Austin Uzor, Blaise Vernyuy, Cecilia Lamptey Botchway, Demas Nwanna Nwoko.

Eighth Edition

The eighth edition was held from 2 - 5 November 2023 at The Federal Palace, Victoria Island, Lagos. The fair’s theme, The Dialogue, explored ideas and elicited reflection, conversation, discussion, and negotiation. The amphitheater played host to programmed events including ART X Talks, The Development Forum, ART X Live!, and the newly introduced ART X Cinema. ART X Cinema — an audio-visual experience that showcased the works of 15 artists from across Africa and its Diaspora. Featured artists and commissioned projects included

, The Nigeria Imaginary Incubator Project presented by the

Museum of West African Art The Museum of West African Art (MOWAA) is a planned museum for west African art to be built in Benin City, Nigeria. It will show over 300 items on loan from European museums. Its architect, David Adjaye, revealed renderings for the museum in N ...

(MOWAA), Dennis Osadebe in collaboration with NBA Africa, Ibrahim Mahama, Ifeoma Fafunwa, and more.

Ninth Edition

The ninth edition was held from 31 October - 3 November 2024 at The Federal Palace, Lagos, and featured an extended virtual exhibition on Artsy. From

Harare Harare ( ), formerly Salisbury, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of , a population of 1,849,600 as of the 2022 Zimbabwe census, 2022 census and an estimated 2,487,209 people in its metrop ...

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

Cotonou Cotonou (; ) is the largest city in Benin. Its official population count was 679,012 inhabitants in 2012; however, over two million people live in the larger urban area. The urban area continues to expand, notably toward the west. The city lies ...

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

, a carefully curated selection of 10 exhibitors presented visionary artists from across Africa and its diaspora. Home to diverse voices in Africa's artistic landscape, the fair's programme also returned with The Projects, ART X Talks, ART X Cinema, ART X Live! and The Development Forum as well as Art Across Borders and an expanded Schools' Programme. ART X Cinema presented a curated selection of 13 films by a new generation of African and diaspora filmmakers and artists whose works challenge and illuminate the trajectories of African and African-descended people worldwide.

The Access ART X Prize

The Access ART X Prize awards early-career artists from Africa and its Diaspora with opportunities to develop their practices, to set them up for the highest levels of success on the global stage. In its initial iteration, the Prize was created to bolster the careers of emerging artists, after identifying the absence of infrastructure that exists for contemporary art within the country. In 2022, the Prize platform evolved to include an additional award, and is now open to emerging artists from the rest of Africa and its Diaspora, in a bid to buttress sustainable careers for a wider range of artists. The 2016 and 2017 editions of the Prize were won by Patrick Akpojotor and Habeeb Andu. In 2018, Bolatito Aderemi-Ibitola, a multi-disciplinary artist, emerged as the winner, receiving a grant towards the execution of a solo presentation at the third edition of ART X Lagos, as well as a three month residency at Gasworks London. In 2019, the Prize was won by self-taught documentary photographer Etinosa Yvonne. After a hiatus due to Covid-19, the Access Bank ART X Prize returned in 2021, with visual artist Chigozie Obi emerging as the winner. In 2022, two winners were awarded. Dafe Oboro emerged as the winner of the Nigeria Award, with a generous grant towards a solo exhibition and a three-month residency at Gasworks London. Belinda Kazeem-Kaminiski won the Africa/Diaspora Award, with the same grant towards a solo exhibition and a three-month residency at Yinka Shonibare's GAS Foundation in Lagos. In 2023, The Access ART X Prize 2022 winners each showcased a solo exhibition at the fair. Nigeria winner, Dafe Oboro presented "Odafe," and The Africa/ Diaspora winner, Belinda Kazeem-Kamiński's solo exhibition, was titled "Ire," The 2023 Prizewinners, Julius Agbaje (Nigerian winner) and Asmaa Jama (Africa/Diaspora winner) were awarded. Due to personal reasons, Jama had to withdraw from the Prize, with Shabu Mwangi — the artist recognized in the Prize's 2023 Honorable Mentions — assuming the position of the Access ART X Prize Africa/Diaspora Winner for 2023. Each winner received a $10,000 grant each towards an exhibition at ART X Lagos 2024. The Nigerian winner embarked on a three-month residency at Gasworks, London, while the African/Diasporan winner completes a residency at Yinka Shonibare's GAS Foundation in Lagos. Both recipients will benefit from tailored mentorship and an invaluable opportunity for cultural exchange. The jury also recognized Roanna Tella in the Nigerian category for Honorable Mentions, who was awarded a cash prize along with personalized mentorship.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official website
__FORCETOC__ Art festivals in Lagos Culture in Lagos State Annual events in Lagos Recurring events established in 2016 2016 establishments in Nigeria