b. 1968, Ibadan, Nigeria Lives and works in Ibadan, Nigeria Ebenezer Samuel Akinola is a distinguished Nigerian painter and curator, celebrated for his sophisticated portraiture and figurative work that seamlessly blends realism and abstraction. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Painting from the University of Benin in 1989, graduating top of his class and receiving multiple accolades, including a scholarship for best painting in his 300 level, the departmental prize for Fine Art, and the Fasuyi Art Prize for painting. Akinola initially taught at Holy Child Secondary School in Calabar and Birrel Avenue High School in Lagos between 1991 and 1992 before transitioning to full-time studio practice. His deeply layered works elevate Black culture while challenging conventional ideas around race, gender, beauty, identity, contemporary politics, and spirituality in Africa. His signature approach divides into two representational modes: a calm, academic style featuring portraits and figure studies that balance broad strokes with intricate details, and a more expressive, abstract approach, characterized by rhythmic exaggeration of limbs and torsos, rich surface textures, and bold linework. Notably, Akinola has completed high-profile portrait commissions for former Nigerian leaders—including Nnamdi Azikiwe, Abdulsalami Abubakar, and Olusegun Obasanjo—now displayed at the National Gallery of Modern Art in Lagos. He has exhibited extensively both locally and internationally and has influenced a generation of contemporary Nigerian artists through mentorship and studio practice. His work has been showcased in exhibitions across Nigeria, Spain, South Africa (most recently Whispers in the Night in Cape Town in 2024), and Europe. Akinola remains a pivotal figure in contemporary African art, respected for his technical mastery and thoughtful engagement with cultural narrative and identity.