Toyin Ojih Odutola:
To Wander Determined
Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018
Toyin Ojih Odutola, Pregnant, 2017. Charcoal, pastel and pencil on paper, 74 1/2 x 42 in. ©Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
For her first solo museum exhibition in New York, Toyin Ojih Odutola presents an interconnected series of fictional portraits, chronicling the lives of two aristocratic Nigerian families.
Ojih Odutola (b. 1985) creates intimate drawings that explore the complexity and malleability of identity. Depicted in her distinctive style of intricate mark-making, her sumptuous compositions reimagine the genre and traditions of portraiture.
Rendered life-size in charcoal, pastel, and pencil, Ojih Odutola’s figures appear enigmatic and mysterious, set against luxurious backdrops of domesticity and leisure. They, and the worlds they inhabit, are informed by the artist’s own array of inspirations, which range from art history to popular culture to experiences of migration and dislocation. Highly attentive to detail and the nuances of space, class, and color—whether of palette or skin—Ojih Odutola continues her examinations of narrative, authenticity, and representation.
Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined presents a significant new body of work alongside a small selection of earlier works, produced in the last year. The exhibition is on view in the John R. Eckel, Jr. Foundation Gallery on the Museum's first floor, which is free and open to the public.
This exhibition is organized by Rujeko Hockley, assistant curator and Melinda Lang, curatorial assistant.
Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined is sponsored by Audi of America.
Major support is provided by John R. Eckel, Jr. Foundation.
Generous support is provided by Jackson Tang.
Additional support is provided by Bernard I. Lumpkin and Carmine D. Boccuzzi.
Artworks
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Representatives of State, 2016-17. Pastel, charcoal and pencil on paper, 75 1/2 x 50 in. (191.8 × 127 cm) ©Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Excavations, 2017. Charcoal, pastel and pencil on paper, 24 x 19 in. (61 × 48.3 cm) ©Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
Toyin Ojih Odutola, Wall of Ambassadors, 2017. Charcoal, pastel, and pencil on paper, 40 × 30 in. © Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Between the Margins, 2017. Charcoal, pastel and pencil on paper, 24 x 19 in. ©Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Years Later - Her Scarf, 2017. Charcoal, pastel and pencil on paper, 72 x 42 in. ©Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Winter Dispatch, 2016. Pastel, charcoal and graphite on paper, 29 1/4 × 39 1/2 in. (74.3 × 100.3 cm) ©Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Unclaimed Estates, 2017. Pastel, charcoal and graphite on paper, 77 × 42 in. (195.6 × 106.7 cm) ©Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
Essay
Toyin Ojih Odutola:
By Her Design
By Rujeko Hockley, assistant curator, and Melinda Lang, curatorial assistant
"Toyin Ojih Odutola—draftswoman, writer, keen observer, creator of worlds—was born in Ife, Nigeria, in 1985. An exemplar of what she has described as the 'wandering immigrant' tradition, she has been itinerant, a determined wanderer, in her locations and interests for much of her life."
Audio guides
Toyin Ojih Odutola, Pregnant, 2017. Charcoal, pastel and pencil on paper, 74 1/2 x 42 in. ©Toyin Ojih Odutola. Courtesy of the artist and Jack Shainman Gallery, New York
Hear directly from artists and curators on selected works from the exhibition.
View guideInstallation Photography
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: Between the Margins, 2017; Surveying the Family Seat, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: The Missionary, 2017; By Her Design, 2017; Between the Margins, 2017; Surveying the Family Seat, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Unclaimed Estates, 2017 (installation view, Whitney Museum of American Art). Charcoal, pastel, and pencil on paper, 77 × 42 in. (195.6 × 106.7 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Jack Shainman Gallery, New York. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: Surveying the Family Seat, 2017; Unclaimed Estates, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, October 20, 2017–February 25, 2018). Photograph by Ron Amstutz. Artwork © Toyin Ojih Odutola
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: The Missionary, 2017; By Her Design, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: The Bride, 2016; Representatives of State, 2016-2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), Representatives of State, 2016-2017 (installation view, Whitney Museum of American Art). Charcoal, pastel, and pencil on paper, 75 1/2 × 50 in. (191.8 × 127 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Jack Shainman Gallery, New York. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: Pregnant, 2017; Years Later - Her Scarf, 2017; Unfinished Commission of the Late Baroness, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: Years Later - Her Scarf, 2017; Industry (Husband and Wife), 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: Unclaimed Estates, 2017; Winter Dispatch, 2016; Newlyweds on Holiday, 2016; Excavations, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, October 20, 2017–February 25, 2018). From left: Winter Dispatch, 2016; Newlyweds on Holiday, 2016; and Excavations, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz. Artwork © Toyin Ojih Odutola
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: Wall of Ambassadors, 2017; After, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: First Night at Boarding School, 2017; By Her Design, 2017; Between the Margins, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, Oct 20, 2017–Feb 25, 2018). From left to right: First Night at Boarding School, 2017; Between the Margins, 2017; Surveying the Family Seat, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
Installation view of Toyin Ojih Odutola: To Wander Determined (Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, October 20, 2017–February 25, 2018). From left: Wall of Ambassadors, 2017; After, 2017; and First Night at Boarding School, 2017. Photograph by Ron Amstutz. Artwork © Toyin Ojih Odutola
Toyin Ojih Odutola (b. 1985), First Night at Boarding School, 2017 (installation view, Whitney Museum of American Art). Charcoal, pastel, and pencil on paper, 63 3/4 x 41 1/2 in. (162 x 105.4 cm). Collection of the artist; courtesy Jack Shainman Gallery, New York. Photograph by Ron Amstutz
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in the Whitney's collection
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In the News
"Her signature mark-making and compositions give a different dimension to the traditional genre and style of portraiture”
—Artinfo
“Fictional Portraits painted in a style verging on magic realism create a haunting impression in Odutola’s NYC museum debut.”
—Time Out
“At the Whitney, a Vision of Africa—Without the Colonialist Meddling.”
—Vogue
“This show has the potential to influence and recharge the momentum in conversations around immigration in America.”
—Elle
“Toyin Ojih Odutola asks us to imagine a world just different enough from the one we live in to be a little uncanny and tremendously revealing.”
—Vice
“The attention to detail in each of Ojih Odutola’s compositions hearkens back to the iconography of Renaissance portraiture.”
—artnet