BARRY YUSUFU

Self-taught Nigerian artist Barry Yusufu creates intimate portraits reminiscent of religious icons, even as they represent real people in his daily life. This intentional style is a product of his deep-rooted faith and a desire to change assumptions about who deserves to be painted, seen, and held up, elevating the position of African people. His earlier portraits are characterized by richly colored, expressive backgrounds that contrast with more subtle figures rendered in achromatic charcoal, recalling painters like Amy Sherald, Barkley L. Hendricks, and Kehinde Wiley, as well as modern European schools of painting like the Expressionists and the Symbolists. In his latest series of bold, larger-than-life depictions of his community that he calls "Sun's People," Yusufu creates a new reality, confronting us with representations long left out of the art historical canon — claiming their and his place within it. Through their gleaming bronze features and direct gaze, he manifests royalty and dieties within their everyday appearance. Says Yusufu, “My people are my inspiration; I paint the stories of my people. I tell the story of my race as well. I want to paint where my people are headed. A different level of glory.” He has exhibited in Lagos, London, Miami, Turin, and Paris, and leads a collective called the Kolony, which supports young Nigerian artists.