“This series is about environmental awareness. I want people to understand that the earth does not really need us, but we need the earth. Children are primarily used to portray this in my work because children are the future. It’s our responsibility to create better living conditions for them. We pass down all that is around to our children, and what we don’t collect they inherit. They are the most vulnerable in society, unaware of the danger or severity of situations, it’s our duty as adults to act as guardians.”
The Other Life, 2015, Acrylic on Canvas, 121 x 91 cm
Chika Idu
Chika Idu
Chika Idu (born 1974) is an exciting artist who studied painting at the Auchi Polytechnic in Edo State from 1993-1998. He was instrumental in the creation of the Defactori Studios, a collective
of dynamic new generation artists. He also created Nigeria’s first Water Colour Society of Artists (SABLES). Idu has taken part in numerous group and solo exhibitions. Idu’s works are characterised by a heavy texture and hazy rendition technique, which he calls ‘light against visual distortion‘. For the past 16 years, he has been committed to exposing the plight of the African child; recently he began an environmental campaign on the risks faced by children living in coastal slums.