An art exhibition in Abuja has brought together contemporary visual art and furniture design to explore African identity, human experiences and the relationship between people and the spaces they inhabit.

Titled “Inhabited Forms: Objects, Figures, Rooms”, the exhibition features works by artists Timi Kakandar and Gbemi Elekula, whose distinct creative practices examine how human figures, everyday objects and living spaces reflect identity, memory and personal experiences.

While Kakandar explores the human figure, African cultural identity, symbolism and the expressive possibilities of hair and adornment, Elekula approaches creativity through furniture, interior spaces and everyday objects, examining how functional items can carry meanings beyond their immediate purposes.

In his artist statement, Kakandar describes the human figure as a vessel for ideas, identity, memory and lived experiences.

His artistic practice examines the invisible experiences that shape human existence, including personal histories, cultural references, relationships, transformation and belonging.

He also explores how the human body can become a landscape for imagination, with hair serving as an artistic language that can transform into architectural forms, gardens, machines and other imaginative structures.

His movement into sculpture has further expanded this exploration through the use of fibreglass, metal, plastic and other unconventional materials, creating works that challenge familiar perceptions of the human figure.

For Kakandar, art goes beyond representing what people see, providing a means of giving physical expression to experiences and ideas that cannot always be seen.

Similarly, Elekula’s practice explores the relationship between people and their surroundings, particularly how furniture and everyday objects become part of personal histories and experiences.

Tracing her creative journey to 2012, Elekula explained that her work had evolved from transforming interior spaces through design to exploring objects as expressions of thought, identity and emotion.

She views furniture as more than functional household items, describing tables and chairs as objects that occupy personal spaces, witness daily routines and become part of people’s intimate experiences.

Through material, form, texture, pattern and unexpected visual references, she seeks to challenge conventional perceptions of furniture and expand how everyday objects can be experienced.

Her approach also examines the relationship between function and expression, structure and spontaneity, as well as familiarity and reinvention.

The exhibition brings the two creative disciplines into conversation, encouraging audiences to reconsider the meanings attached to familiar objects, human figures and the spaces they occupy.

Speaking during the exhibition, one of the attendees, Toapheek Babayeju, welcomed the collaboration, describing the coming together of the two artists as an impressive creative experience, particularly for Abuja’s growing art and cultural scene.

He noted that the combination of different artistic approaches offered an opportunity to appreciate creativity and artistic expression from new perspectives.

Babayeju also highlighted the importance of African originality and cultural expression, arguing that Africans could achieve extraordinary creative results without necessarily adding exaggerated cultural elements to their work.