Here are the two most valuable female artists of Nigerian origin

There are currently five most expensive visual artist of Nigeria origin according to information supplied by Sotheby’s from Artnet, an art market website, and further referenced by Business Insider Sub Saharan Africa in its compilation of a list of the highest-selling artists in the country.

Out of the five names are two women and three men. These women, Akunyili Njideka Crosby and Toyin Ojih Odutola, hold the first and third positions, respectively, on the chart of the most expensive art pieces ever auctioned.

Akunyili Njideka Crosby

She is a Nigerian- born visual artist based in Los Angeles, California and daughter of former director of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) late Dora Akunyili.

Crosby currently leads in this list of the most expensive Nigerian paintings auctioned in recent times, displacing top-notch painter, Ben Enwonwu who had held that spot for a while.

In September 2018, her painting, Bush Babies was purchased at the enormous sum of $3.4 million (N1.3 billion) at Sotheby’s art house in New York thus, making it the most expensive Nigerian painting sold out at an auction.

Aside from that, she also has other expensive pieces. According to records, demand for Crosby’s work, which she produces slowly, far outweighed supply, prompting her prices to soar at auction, by 2016.

In March 2017, The Beautyful Ones, (Series #1c) a work by Akunyili Crosby, and the first painting of five belonging to The Beautyful Ones Series, was reportedly sold by a private collector for $3 million at Christie’s London.

According to Sotheby’s, Crosby is “The most valuable Nigerian artist ever and one of the most valuable female artists of all times” Her art is said to “negotiate the cultural terrain between her adopted home in America and her native Nigeria, creating collage and photo transfer-based paintings that expose the challenges of occupying these two worlds”.

Toyin Ojih Odutola

Odutola is currently also one of the most expensive artists out of Nigeria. She became the third highestpaid Nigerian artist of all time after her drawing ‘Compound Leaf’ sold for $597,336 (£471,000, roughly N215 million) at the Sotheby’s.

A native of Ile-ife, Nigeria, Odutola is born to parents who were both academics. She and her sib moved to the United States with her parents in 1990. The 35-years-old has had an incredible career in the visual art world, recording many strides including a feature in Forbes, in its 2012 list of 30 notable individuals under 30 in the category “Art & Style,” and a nomination as one of the 21 shortlisted artists for the Future Generation Art Prize for 2019.

Her work explores themes on socio-economic inequality, the legacy of colonialism, queer and gender theory, notions of blackness as a visual and social symbol, as well as experiences of migration and dislocation.

Although Odutola is best known for her detailed portrait drawings, done entirely or primarily in black pen ink, her recent work has expanded to include charcoal, pastel, chalk, and pencil.

Art enthusiasts often view her work as challenging the many traditional notions about social and political identity as well as the framework of which it is defined. Her work has also been described as an intentional means of translating those narratives about race, identity, and class visually.