MORGANABLE LIFE & CULTURE / EXHIBITION
ART X Lagos has brought contemporary African art into focus through its 11th edition, which featured 15 galleries and exhibitors at the Federal Palace in Lagos.
Akure —
ART X Lagos has brought contemporary African art into focus through its 11th edition, which featured 15 galleries and exhibitors at the Federal Palace in Lagos.
Held from November 5 to 8, 2026, the four-day fair connected artists, collectors, curators and visitors from Africa and the diaspora. It also created space for conversations about heritage, identity and the future of creative expression.
This year’s edition carried the theme “A New Chapter, A New Decade”. The theme marked the fair’s move into its second decade after its launch in 2016.
It also encouraged artists and audiences to consider how cultural history can influence new ideas without limiting artistic growth.
Founded by Tokini Peterside-Schwebig, ART X Lagos has developed into an international platform for contemporary art from Africa and its diaspora.
Over the years, it has welcomed galleries, artists and cultural practitioners working across different forms. Its latest edition continued that approach by combining gallery presentations with exhibitions, talks, film, music and educational activities.
FIFTEEN GALLERIES AND EXHIBITORS
The 2026 fair presented 15 exhibitors across its main and spotlight sections. The main section included Affinity Art Gallery, Afriart Gallery, Alexis Galleries, AMG Projects, Gallery 1957, kó, Kokopelli Gallery, Nike Art Gallery, O’DA Art, SMO Contemporary Art, TAFETA and Yenwa.
The selection brought together galleries from Nigeria, Uganda, Ghana and the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, the spotlight section featured Adegbola Gallery, Nomadic Art Gallery and Windsor Gallery. All three are based in Nigeria and received a platform to present emerging artistic voices.
The mix of established and newer galleries reflected the fair’s interest in different stages of the African art scene.
It also gave visitors an opportunity to encounter varied approaches to painting, sculpture, photography, textiles and other forms of visual art.
One of the key exhibitions was “Ladi Kwali: Beyond the Vessel”, presented under ART X ICON. Curated by Dr Jareh Das, the exhibition honoured Nigerian potter Ladi Dosei Kwali, who lived from 1925 to 1984. It examined her work and influence beyond the pottery for which she became widely known.
The exhibition brought together ceramics and archival materials from the National Museum in Lagos, alongside works from private lenders. It also presented work by women potters who worked alongside or after Kwali, including Kande Ushafa and Asibi Ido.
Traditional pottery associated with Gbari, Nupe and Bida communities formed part of the wider presentation.
Through these works, the exhibition considered the relationship between craft and fine art. It also drew attention to the women and communities whose knowledge helped sustain pottery traditions across generations.
Kwali’s career remains an important part of Nigeria’s artistic history. Her work gained international recognition and challenged narrow views of pottery as a lesser art form.
By revisiting her practice, the exhibition invited younger audiences to understand the depth of African creative traditions and the people who developed them.
The ART X ICON Masterclass extended this focus. The programme selected 10 emerging artists for conversations and workshops with established figures in African art.
It aimed to connect a new generation of practitioners with Kwali’s legacy and wider artistic knowledge.
ART BEYOND THE GALLERIES
The fair also presented special projects that expanded its programme beyond gallery booths. One major installation was Ndidi Dike’s “Residues of Past Encounters, 2024–2026”, curated by N’Goné Fall.
The work used the image of a damaged canoe to reflect on the history of the transatlantic slave trade and the memory associated with Badagry’s Point of No Return.
ART X Cinema brought moving-image works into the wider fair programme. One of its featured works was “Mothers of Chibok” (2024), by Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Joel ‘Kachi Benson.
The programme also created an opportunity for audiences to engage with film as part of contemporary African artistic practice.
In addition, ART X Talks hosted conversations around art, history and cultural production. The discussions gave artists, curators and other practitioners room to share ideas and examine issues affecting the sector.
Music also formed part of the programme through ART X Live!, curated by Lanre Masha. The event featured performers including Kunmie, Ekene, Lodu, Lulu, Taves, Solana, Nora and Weareallchemicals.
Their performances connected contemporary African sound with the fair’s wider focus on cultural inheritance and new forms of expression.
Beyond exhibitions and performances, ART X Lagos continued its educational work. Its Schools’ Programme aimed to make art more accessible to students, including those from underserved communities in Lagos. The fair also provided activities and learning opportunities for younger visitors.
The Development Forum addressed the professional paths available to emerging artists and curators. It encouraged discussions about building sustainable careers and strengthening the wider art ecosystem.
Meanwhile, the ART X Prize continued the fair’s support for emerging talent from Africa and its diaspora.
The fair’s 2026 theme placed local knowledge and artistic history at the centre of its programme. It asked how artists can carry cultural inheritance into new work while responding to present-day realities.
That approach connected historical practices with contemporary ideas rather than treating them as separate worlds.
The 11th edition closed on November 8 after four days of exhibitions and public programmes. Its 15 exhibitors, special projects and wider activities offered visitors different ways to engage with contemporary African art.
As ART X Lagos enters its second decade, its challenge will be to build on this platform and deepen opportunities for artists across the continent. The latest edition showed the value of connecting creative work with history, education and public discussion.
It also placed African artists and their ideas firmly at the centre of the conversation about the future of contemporary art for artists and audiences everywhere. The programme strengthened links between artists, institutions, collectors and audiences across the continent.
