Joy Labinjo: The Elephant in the Room

Rising art star Joy Labinjo has made a name for herself by painting it black. This young London-based artist produces many of her large-scale figurative works from photographs of her Nigerian family and the everyday people around her. In an art form historically overrun by white males, Labinjo is among a new wave of women of colour figurative artists helping to re-dress the imbalance. It figures that this in-demand artist would be snapped up by The Breeder for her first solo exhibition in Athens.  The heavy hitter gallery always has its finger firmly on the pulse. Labinjo created this new body of work while under lockdown in the UK in the crucible of mass protests around Black Lives Matter. Fresh and arresting, her creations echo her dual identity: growing up Black, British, Nigerian in the 90s and early Noughties. You’ll see these intimate paintings, alongside works Labinjo made on paper in Athens while participating in The Breeder’s Open Studio programme - where visitors were able to meet the artist and observe her in action.