John is a contemporary Nigerian painter working from his home studio in Abuja, Nigeria. Though he holds a BSc in Accounting, John made the bold decision to commit to art full time in 2020, a pivotal turning point that marked the beginning of a practice now catching the attention of collectors across the world.

Working primarily in charcoal, acrylic, and oil on canvas, John has developed one of the most distinctive visual signatures in contemporary African portraiture. His subjects are rendered with green skin, a deliberate and deeply personal choice rooted in his childhood memories of growing up on his grandparents’ farm, where green filled every corner of his daily environment. For John, green represents vegetation, growth, prosperity, and new beginnings. Overlaid across his figures are black polka dots, a symbol of the universal connectedness of all human beings and a nod to our shared evolution as a species.

His work is unflinching in its gaze, subjects stare back at the viewer with quiet confidence and poise, reclaiming their own image and narrative. Through portraiture, John explores themes of identity, societal issues facing young people, and the rich, multilayered cultural reality of contemporary Africa. His influences include celebrated artists such as Amoako Boafo, Annan Affotey, and Kehinde Wiley, though his aesthetic is unmistakably his own.

John has exhibited with ICanDraw Africa, Circleofnone UK, Valoris Fine Art, and TAAG Gallery, and his works have been acquired by private collectors in Nigeria and internationally.

Medium: Charcoal, Acrylic, Oil on Canvas Based in: Abuja, Nigeria