Skip to main content

This auction has ended. View lot details

You may also be interested in

Own a similar item?

Submit your item online for a free auction estimate.

Ben Osaghae (Nigerian, 1962-2017) Nobility of Labour, 2013, 112 x 110 cm image 1
Ben Osaghae (Nigerian, 1962-2017) Nobility of Labour, 2013, 112 x 110 cm image 2
Lot 188*

Ben Osaghae
(Nigerian, 1962-2017)
Nobility of Labour, 2013 (unframed)

12 October 2023, 14:00 BST
London, New Bond Street

£4,000 - £6,000

Own a similar item?

Submit your item online for a free auction estimate.

How to sell

Looking for a similar item?

Our African Modern & Contemporary Art specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.

Find your local specialist

Ask about this lot

Ben Osaghae (Nigerian, 1962-2017)

Nobility of Labour, 2013
signed and dated 'Ben Osaghae '13' (lower right); inscribed 'NOBILITY OF LABOUR/ ACRYLIC, 2013/ Ben Osaghae' (verso)
acrylic on canvas
107 x 108cm (42 1/8 x 42 1/2in).
(unframed)

Footnotes

Provenance
Acquired directly from the artist, 2015;
A private collection.

Widely known as a highly skilled draughtsman, Ben Osaghae communicates the story he is portraying through metaphorical imagery. This also allows a level of ambiguity in the artist's work, allowing the viewer to access personal interpretation within his work.

'When I set out to paint, a part of me is also thinking about the audience. Not in the sense of trying to bend the painting to suit or to fit the audience. My philosophy is that a painting can stimulate discussion, can expand your point of view.' (Ben Osaghae, 'Colourful & Oblique: Ben Osaghae's Paintings', in Position: Visual Art Supplement, Vol. 6 No. 1, p. 13.)

Born in 1962, Osaghae studied at the famous Auchi School of Art before moving to Lagos where he established a full time studio practice. Championing a philosophy based on the importance of colour, the artist's works each embody a vibrancy of expressive colour, as in the present lot.

Additional information

Bid now on these items

Bertina Lopes(Mozambican, 1924-2012)"Respiro" (Breath)

Bertina Lopes(Mozambican, 1924-2012)"Jazz una forma di musica classica contemporanea che riflette il cosmo prospettico dell'Africa II (da una frase di Harolds Bradley)" (Jazz is a form of contemporary classical music that reflects the cosmos African II perspective (from a phrase by Harold Bradley))

Bertina Lopes(Mozambican, 1924-2012)"Il sole la vita" (The Sun, Life)

Bertina Lopes(Mozambican, 1924-2012)"Ipotese dello continuo" (I'm a fan of the continuous)

Willem Boshoff(South African, born 1951)Neves I & II

Karen Jarosynzka(South African 1934-2014)Quasimodo

Rom Isichei(Nigerian, born 1966)Conversation with my Alter Ego

Anton Karstel(South African, born 1968)Portrait of Ian van Biljoen

Anton Karstel(South African, born 1968)Adderley St

Greg Marinovich(South African, born 1962)

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela(South African, 1918-2013)Left hand

Sophie Mowat(British, born 1988)The Other Bounty

Christine Dixie(South African, born 1966)Hide (To withhold or withdraw from sight)

Glory Samjolly(British, born 1997)Dear Archives

Walter Whall Battiss(South African, 1906-1982)Three Fook Stamps

Alison Turner(British, born 1976)At The Hands Of The Enslaved, Our Society Was Built

Stuart Bird(South African, born 1977)Zuma Biscuits 2 x 5 x 7cm (13/16 x 1 15/16 x 2 3/4in). (each) (4)

Neequaye Dreph Dsane(British, born 1973)Dress Code

Gail Deborah Catlin(South African, born 1948)Female nude

Kione Grandison(British, born 1996)Let Us Not Forget

Norman Clive Catherine(South African, born 1949)Fook Dog

Alvin Kofi(British, born 1961)The Longitude Of Culture

Guy du Toit(South African, born 1958)Little Deaths

Kazvare Knox(Zimbabwean, born 1986)Someone's Been Stealing Our Things