Ben Enwonwu

Celebrating African Art Icon, Ben Enwonwu. A photograph of Odinigwe Benedict Chukwukadibia Enwonwu (1917-1994), better known as Ben Enwonwu, who is arguably regarded as the most influential African artist of the 20th century. Born in Onitsha in southern Nigeria, he studied fine arts at the Government College in 1934, before receiving a scholarship to study in the UK in 1944, where he attended Goldsmiths College and the Slade School of Fine Arts. As a pioneer of African modernism, he engaged with the international art world, studying modern European art movements such as Symbolism and Fauvism. Upon his return to Nigeria in 1948, he was appointed Artist Adviser to the Federal Government. In the 1950's, Enwonwu was celebrated as "Africa's Greatest Artist" by the international media. He won numerous accolades including an MBE by Queen Elizabeth II in 1955 and a royal commission for a large bronze statue of the Queen displayed at the entrance of the Parliament Buildings in Lagos.