Nnadi: Nigeria's realist painter capturing child-mother emotions

By Pauline Odhiambo

If words are not enough to express the love between a mother and daughter, then perhaps a painting can better convey their strong bond. That's the belief of Nigerian artist Ikechukwu Nnadi.

Following the birth of his daughter Nnadi was so moved by this mother-daughter bond that he began painting a collection based exclusively on this relationship.

“Hearing the news that my wife was going to give birth to a baby girl was life-changing. It really moved me to think deeply about the emotional ties between a mother and daughter, and express that in my art,” Nnadi tells TRT Afrika.

He is currently working on the eighth painting in a collection that will comprise 12 pieces in total.

‘Perfect portrait’

But capturing the emotional bonds has always characterised Nnadi’s artistry. One of his first attempt in portraiture was inspired by his father – a photographer with a keen eye for detail.

“As a boy, I was determined to draw the perfect portrait of my dad, so I kept doing several sketches based on his photo,” the 34-year old artist recalls.

“I drew the same portrait over and over until I finally got all his features right.”

This penchant for perfection inevitably led Nnadi to hyperrealism art – a skill he sharpened during his high school and university years.

“I got my first commission from my sister’s friend when I was still in secondary school. Getting paid for something I love to do was so motivating because it helped to look after my own expenses when I got to university,” he states.

‘Realist painter’

His style has evolved over time, gradually shifting from hyperrealism to his current signature style. “It took years of practice to develop my own style of painting,” says the fine arts graduate.

“I used to call myself a hyperrealist painter but I now refer to myself as a ‘realistic painter ’because my paintings now tell better stories of the subjects by conveying their feeling and moods in general.”

The effect is near-tangible perception of the emotional state of the subject, which in turn makes the painting more relatable and engaging to the viewer.

“Even when I have a model pose for my paintings, I first allow them to just relax and get lost in their thoughts so that I can better capture their mood,” Nnadi explains.

“I try to picture how I want them to appear in the painting and match that to the stories I have in my heart. This is something I deliberately want people to see when they look at my art.”

Pricey paper

Yet another series by Nnadi, is ‘Portrait of a Lady’ which showcases different women in varying states of contemplation.

He has also created a self-portrait series and another series titled Anwulika which means ‘my joy is greater’ in Igbo language.

Nnadi’s joy of painting is perhaps only dampened by the price tag of some of his materials.

“It’s hard getting the right quality of paper so I have to import all the paper I need, and that can be quite pricey,” he states.

“The pastel paper that I use is shipped from abroad, and that significantly spikes the cost of painting materials.”

Nnadi often has to import certain types of canvas as well.

‘Trust the process’

“I’m hoping the companies that make these art supplies will one day open stores in Nigeria which I think would help lower the costs,” he muses. “They should maybe also consider making local artists their brand ambassadors so that artists can get the materials they need at a subsidised cost.”

Many of Nnadi’s painting have been showcased in galleries Nigeria and in European.

Nnadi's advice to aspiring artists: “Trust the process of your artistry and just flow with it. Allow yourself that grace of making mistakes. Those mistakes will help shape you into the artist you are destined to be.”