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The paintings of Njideka Akunyili Crosby or are they collages?
do not exude the kind of Instagram-ready wall power of so much contemporary art.
They do not come to you.
You must go to them, one at a time, which makes for a quiet, piecemeal experience.
Do not do this.
Akunyili Crosbys subtle art pays off with an investment of time.
The works are on paper, all matte, occupying a middle range of secondary color.
They are seated in a garden, their figures overlaid with historical images and abstract patterns.
Akunyili Crosby looks directly at us, attentive, relaxed.
We also see happy smiling family pictures, all visually woven together.
There are generations here.
In the center of the picture is an Igbo pot.
Her dress is green and crowded with images of Black figures with raised fists.
I think of this memory bank that I carry from growing up in Nigeria, Akunyili Crosby has said.
This is 13-year-old Akunyili Crosby, marking the beginning of a grand voyage.
Theres no pain or suffering here, just a poignant moment on Akunyili Crosbys road to becoming herself.
