“Life at the Beach” (2021) by Peter Uka
FOR HIS FIRST PERSONAL EXHIBITION in the United States, Pierre Uka presents seven new figurative paintings. Presented to Mariane Ibrahim in Chicago, “Peter Uka: Longing” channels 1970s nostalgia and memories of growing up in Nigeria.
Uka depicts men wearing bell bottoms at the beach, at the barbershop, and gathering for a portrait on floor cushions. One painting is titled “Sideburn Brothers” (2021). In another, a female subject named “Marsha” wears a perfectly styled afro with a loose, jewel-toned offset and large hoop earrings.
Born in Nigeria, Uka is based in Cologne, Germany. Memories of his Nigerian roots run through the artist’s practice and his latest body of work.
Uka recalls the joy of a simpler time when people were engaged with each other. get lost in time and in their natural environment rather than in their electronic devices.
Produced in rich saturated palettes, his images possess a photographic quality and each has a “presence of green”, whether it is a landscape, leaves, clothing or an interior space painted in shades of green in homage to the dense forests that Uka said were once ubiquitous. “These are things that my people no longer have,” the artist said in a video about the exhibit.
“For me, it’s a moment in time. A time when everything was fine, everything was fine,” Uka said. “I remember being a young kid and being happy. Carefree. All the problems, the adults took care of them. And now, as a grown man, I think back to that time. They are gone, but their memory stays with me and I yearn for that peaceful moment when everything was fine. And for me, it’s a way to come back to it. CT
“Peter Uka: Longing” is on view at Mariane Ibrahim in Chicago, Illinois from November 13, 2021 through January 1. 15, 2022
LEARN MORE about the exhibition
PETER UKA, Detail from “Marsha”, 2021 (oil on canvas, 70 7/8 x 70 7/8 inches / 180 x 180 cm). | © Peter Uka, Courtesy the artist and Mariane Ibrahim
Installation view of “Peter Uka: Longing”, Mariane Ibrahim, Chicago, Illinois (November 13, 2021-January 15, 2022). | Courtesy of the artist and Miriam Ibrahim
PETER UKA, “Still Riding 2”, 2021 (oil on canvas, 55 1/8 x 74 3/4 inches / 140 x 190 cm). | © Peter Uka, Courtesy the artist and Mariane Ibrahim
PETER UKA, “Sideburn Brothers”, 2021 (oil on canvas, 86 5/8 x 74 3/4 inches / 220 x 190 cm). | © Peter Uka, Courtesy the artist and Mariane Ibrahim
Installation view of “Peter Uka: Longing”, Mariane Ibrahim, Chicago, Illinois (November 13, 2021-January 15, 2022). | Courtesy of the artist and Miriam Ibrahim
Installation view of “Peter Uka: Longing”, Mariane Ibrahim, Chicago, Illinois (November 13, 2021-January 15, 2022). Shown, “Fresh Up (cut)”, 2021. | Courtesy of the artist and Miriam Ibrahim
PETER UKA, “Fresh Up (Trimmed)”, 2021 (oil on canvas, 78 3/4 x 90 1/2 inches / 200 x 230 cm). | © Peter Uka, Courtesy the artist and Mariane Ibrahim
PETER UKA, “Blue Jacket”, 2021 (oil on canvas, 74 3/4 x 57 1/8 inches / 190 x 145 cm). | © Peter Uka, Courtesy the artist and Mariane Ibrahim
Installation view of “Peter Uka: Longing”, Mariane Ibrahim, Chicago, Illinois (November 13, 2021-January 15, 2022). | Courtesy of the artist and Miriam Ibrahim
PETER UKA, “OT”, 2021 (oil on canvas, 63 x 78 3/4 inches / 160 x 200 cm). | © Peter Uka, Courtesy the artist and Mariane Ibrahim
Artist Peter Uka presents “Longing”, his first solo exhibition in the United States and shares his inspiration for the works. | Video of Mariane Ibrahim
TOP IMAGE: PETER UKA, Detail from “Beach Life”, 2021 (oil on canvas, 70 7/8 x 98 3/8 inches / 180 x 250 cm). | © Peter Uka, Courtesy the artist and Mariane Ibrahim
Several recent volumes explore the work of contemporary African figurative painters and artists, including ‘Unrealism: New Figurative Paintingn’, ‘Radical Figures: Painting in the New Millennium’ and ‘African Artists: From 1882 to Now’.
