From November 6–9, 2025, ART X Lagos marks a decade of celebrating African creativity. At the heart of this milestone edition is “An Exacting Eye,” a landmark exhibition honoring one of Nigeria’s greatest visual storytellers — J.D. ’Okhai Ojeikere.
For more than sixty years, Ojeikere chronicled Nigeria with discipline, grace, and an unflinching eye for detail. His photography transformed the ordinary, from architectural forms to the intricate geometry of women’s hairstyles — into enduring emblems of African modernity.
At ART X Lagos 10X, his images return home in an expansive retrospective that celebrates not just the artist, but the meticulous method that defined his life’s work. It’s a profound reminder of how photography can preserve identity, history, and beauty all at once.
Echoes of an Eye
Born in 1930 in Ovbiomu-Emai, Edo State, Ojeikere began photographing in the 1950s, capturing a young nation in the making. His compositions were structured, his subjects rendered extraordinary through simplicity and light.
His celebrated series, Hairstyles, remains one of the most iconic bodies of work in African photography, a visual dictionary of cultural pride. Each braid, twist, and knot told a story of self-expression and sovereignty, reflecting the confidence of a newly independent Nigeria.
At a time when Africa was often viewed through foreign lenses, Ojeikere turned the camera inward, redefining what it meant to see and be seen as African. His discipline, restraint, and aesthetic clarity helped shape a visual language that continues to inspire generations of photographers across the continent and beyond.
Passing the Torch
“An Exacting Eye” doesn’t dwell in nostalgia — it points forward. Alongside the exhibition, a mentorship initiative titled The Masterclass, led by Ojeikere’s son, Amaize Ojeikere, will nurture ten emerging Nigerian photographers.
Through hands-on workshops exploring form, repetition, and identity, participants will engage deeply with Ojeikere’s approach. Selected artists will later receive production grants and public showcases, ensuring that his legacy continues to evolve through new eyes and new visions.
Photographers interested in applying can visit the ART X Lagos website for full details. Applications close on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, at 11:59 PM WAT.
The Architecture of Vision
Ojeikere’s genius was in his precision. Where others sought spectacle, he pursued structure. His portraits, crisp, balanced, and intentional, elevated everyday beauty to the realm of architecture.
In doing so, he achieved something profound: he transformed beauty into documentation, and documentation into resistance. His archive reminds us that photography is not only about what we see, but who decides how we see it.
Today, within the global platform of ART X Lagos, his work feels prophetic. As African artists continue to shape global dialogues around identity and belonging, Ojeikere’s images remain a compass, grounding the present in the dignity of the past.
To care about Ojeikere’s work is to care about how we define ourselves, and how future generations will remember us.
ART X ICON: “An Exacting Eye”
🗓 November 6–9, 2025
📍 Federal Palace, Lagos
🎟 Tickets available via ART X Lagos website
