Reframing Narrative

In celebration of Black History Month the Art department would like to introduce to you a contemporary black Nigerian female artist:  Jacqueline Suowari.

Born and based in Nigeria, Jacqueline Suowari is a full-time ballpoint pen, mix media artist and draughtswoman, whose journey into art started from the early age of five. Suowari loves drawing because it's a powerful way to express herself. She spends countless hours creating detailed drawings with a ballpoint pen. Each piece can take months to finish, but she's dedicated to achieving perfection. In her drawings, she combines different design elements to share her feelings and experiences with others. Her work is full of emotion and imagination, and she hopes it will make viewers feel something.

“For my paintings, I predominantly use a ballpoint pen, fabric cutouts, gold leaf, and acrylic. For other forms of art, such as installation and sculpture, I most often employ the use of paper, plastic, cling film, and wire mesh.”

See further examples of her work here. Suowari will be exhibiting her work at the London Lighthouse Gallery from 10 – 31 October if you would like to see it live. The name of her exhibition is ‘Adorn’.

The Art department would like to celebrate the rich diversity we have in our community by setting an art brief for all students in response to Suowari’s artwork.

Students who submit artwork have the opportunity for it to appear in the Newsletter and be awarded ‘Artist of the Month.’

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Brief:

We would like you to create a piece of artwork in response to Jacqueline Suowari which celebrates your own culture. This could be a self portrait or a portrait of a family member or friend and include patterns and colour connected to yours/their culture. You must use a biro pen and include an element of fabric. You may also like to include acrylic and papers. Work should be a minimum A5 in size.

Deadline: 4 November 2024

If you have any further questions, please ask your art teacher or Mrs Sheehan.