The quiet strength of sculpture, the poetry of movement, and the emotional weight of the human condition will converge in Lagos as Flesh and Stone, a compelling group exhibition featuring works by Nigerian artists Sam Ebohon, Francis Denedo and Luke Osaro opens on May 30, 2026 at AINA.
Words Ireho Aito | Don’t Keep Your Art in the Finger!
Contemporary Nigerian sculpture and painting will take centre stage once again in Lagos as Flesh and Stone, a group exhibition featuring Sam Ebohon, Francis Denedo and Luke Osaro opens on May 30, 2026 at AINA, Ikoyi.
Opening by 4pm at the serene art space located at 44 Raymond Njoku Street, Off Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, Lagos, the exhibition promises an encounter with textured forms, emotional movement, and powerful interpretations of the human experience.
Bringing together three artists with distinct creative temperaments, Flesh and Stone reflects on the fragile and enduring nature of humanity through sculptural expressions rooted in memory, identity, resilience, culture, and transformation.
For followers of contemporary Nigerian art, master artist Sam Ebohon remains a celebrated artistic force whose creative language continues to evolve through decades of dedication to visual storytelling. In an earlier feature by iBAND Magazine, the renowned artist described the artistic discipline of his generation as one deeply rooted in drawing, craftsmanship and technical strength. “We were taught if you cannot draw then you cannot be termed as an artist,” he reflected while discussing the changing landscape of Nigerian contemporary art.
Widely recognised for his fragmented figurative compositions and energetic visual rhythm, Ebohon’s works often merge abstraction with emotional intensity. His artistic journey from Mushin, Lagos into the global art space has remained one of consistency, reinvention, and cultural consciousness.
Luke Osaro, whose sculptural language has repeatedly drawn admiration from iBAND Magazine over the years, brings his signature exploration of African royalty, heritage and symbolism into the exhibition. In a 2021 iBAND Magazine feature titled Don’t Keep Your Art in the Finger! A Luke From The Origin, Osaro was celebrated as an artist whose creations emerge from “constant search for knowledge from the source.”
Known for works such as Atinu Ade and Ade Iyun, Luke Osaro’s sculptural practice thrives on experimentation with history, royalty and African consciousness. His bonded stone works and regal forms continue to establish him as one of the contemporary sculptors deeply invested in preserving cultural identity through modern expressions.
While Francis Denedo contributes another dimension to the exhibition’s visual dialogue, Flesh and Stone collectively becomes more than a sculptural showcase. It evolves into a meditation on existence itself, the tension between softness and permanence, vulnerability and endurance, motion and stillness.
The exhibition’s title suggests both physical material and emotional metaphor. Flesh represents humanity in its fragile, emotional and transient state, while stone symbolises memory, permanence, resilience and survival. Together, the artists transform these ideas into forms that speak beyond words.
Visitors are expected to experience works that embody movement, anatomy, emotional gestures, textured surfaces, and symbolic storytelling elements that continue to shape the expanding language of contemporary African sculpture.
As Lagos continues to strengthen its reputation as one of Africa’s most vibrant art capitals, Flesh and Stone arrives as another important artistic gathering where sculpture, culture and human experience intersect in compelling form.
Flesh and Stone opens Saturday, May 30, 2026 by 4pm at AINA, Ikoyi, Lagos.
iBAND Magazine, Celebrating Visual Arts from the Original.
Africa | Visual Art | Lifestyle | Culture
