Art as redemption: the portraits of Matthew Imuetiyan Eguavoen
Matthew Imuetiyan Eguavoen is not just a painter: he is a storyteller, an interpreter of the human condition and an activist who uses his art to influence reality. His works, already in collections around the world, gain relevance for their ability to tell forgotten or misunderstood stories, offering a direct glimpse into a Nigeria that struggles, hopes and resists.
Born in 1988 in Edo State, Nigeria, Matthew is an artist who manages to converse his personal journey with the deep wounds of Nigeria and Africa and is a vibrant voice in the contemporary African art scene. With no canonical academic training, he only discovered art as a means to express and understand himself in 2018. But it was in 2020, in the midst of a pandemic and an existential crisis, that he realised the potential of painting: a refuge, a means to interpret the world around him.
For Eguavoen, painting is not just an aesthetic or formal exercise, but a useful lens to explore the human condition. Indeed, his works address issues such as the global misrepresentation of African populations, political corruption and mental health stigma, challenging the stereotypes that surround his home country. Mental health is in fact a subject that is very dear to the artist, because as he himself explains, depression is often ignored or misunderstood in Africa, and his works seek to open up a space for dialogue, breaking the silence that surrounds this topic.
His aim therefore, as he himself has repeatedly stated, is to correct the distorted narratives that have led Africa to be misunderstood and misrepresented for so long and to bring urgent social issues to light, painting portraits that restore dignity to ordinary people and offer a more authentic view of their experiences.
Portraits that are magnetic, that captivate the viewer and demand to be looked at and listened to. His figures communicate with an emotional depth that transcends their formal representation. The subjects' intense gazes, characterised by dark, penetrating eyes, capture the viewer and invite him to question the experiences they embody. The rough skin that envelops the protagonists of his works is a clear reference to the harshness of daily life in Nigeria, to a reality marked by economic deprivation and social pressures.
Perhaps Matthew's most distinctive aspect, however, is that while he recognises the importance of the art market, he is not interested in creating works to satisfy commercial demand. His real ambition is to produce art that remains relevant over time and continues to raise profound questions even years after its creation. And this is what characterises him as an artist: his dedication to a lasting impact, capable of transforming the public's perception of his reality and that of his community.
Eguavoen, therefore, is not afraid to be an outsider in the art world. His is an authentic quest, a struggle to maintain his creative integrity in a world that often demands conformity. As he suggests to young artists, the secret to success is to abandon the desire to please others and devote oneself to creating works that reflect one's inner truth.
Alessia Fraioli is a content creator and populariser of contemporary art. Through her social channels she helps artists, exhibitions and events to gain visibility, helping her audience to develop critical thinking. Her communication is extremely engaging and direct, able to interest a wide audience, even those who are generally not interested in art, let alone contemporary art.
