Viewing Ken Nwadiogbu: Journey Mercies, The Bomb Factory Art Foundation

Nigerian artist Ken Nwadiogbu is the subject of a new solo show at The Bomb Factory Art Foundation in London. Central to the presentation is an installation of stacked cardboard boxes. Each box is painted with the face of someone the artist has met on his travels.

For Nwadiogbu, it is a metaphor for global trade and the migrant experience: ‘Our individual lives may be self-contained but, essentially, we stand on each other’s shoulders journeying to a different continent and bringing with us values that shape the culture and ideas of these spaces’.

Painted in vibrant colours, the boxes stack in a way that references traditional African woven fabrics, while the title of the exhibition pays homage to the Nigerian custom of saying prayers for a traveller about to embark on a long journey.

‘Journey Mercies highlights the struggles and joys, gains and losses of Migration,’ explains the artist. ‘This is particularly applicable to those of us with dreams, values and hope who flee our countries due to the insecurity, lack of infrastructure, and scarcity. But the stacked structures we build are intact. The communities are rich with diversity and beauty.’