By Toni Kan

The announcement of London based curator, writer and lecturer PejuOshin as Associate Director at the Gagosian Gallery is an important one, highlighting as it does, the giant strides young Nigerian women are making on the global art scene.

Young, talented and driven, Ms. Oshinwitha background in architecture made her art world entrée in 2015 and in the intervening yawn of time, has worked at the Tate as Curator: Young People’s Programmes. During her time at Tate, PejuOshin who has expressed a deliberate concern and focus on the “marginalised” delivered “exciting and ambitious projects in support of young and emerging artists, as well as cultural leaders across the arts community” according to the statement announcing her appointment.

Continuing, the statement notes that in her new role, PejuOshin is expected to continue to “promote the visibility of artists from both the global majority and those who identify as people of color through our own programming as well as within the greater arts ecosystem in London.”

Her move from the Tate, a bastion of the UK art establishment to the Gagosian Gallery, a commercial stronghold and home to some of the most influential artists of the 20th and 21st century while a testament to her talent and experience positions her as an emergent cultural powerhouse poised to expand the universe of opportunities open to usually marginalized artists.

Ms. Oshin is chairman of the PeckhamPlatform, an Associate Lecturer at Central Saint Martins  andon the judging panel of Association of Women in the Arts (AWITA) Londonand JW Anderson partnership programme of exhibitions and interventions of female artists. She was shortlisted for the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe list in the Arts & Culture category in 2021.

AdenreleSonariwo started off as an accountant and had a four year stint at PricewaterhouseCoopers after graduating from Howard University. The art bug soon bit and her first salvo was a pop-up art university called The Modern Day School of the Arts (MDSA). 

Conceived in 2010,Rele gallery did not take off until 2015 and it quickly made a splash opening up the space to a younger and hipper generation of Nigerian art connoisseurs and collectors. The Young Contemporary programme facilitated by the Rele Art Foundation has also created a pipeline for talented and wave making contemporary artists like Tonia Nneji, ChidinmaNnoli, MarcellinaAkpojotor, David Otaru and IyunOlaSanyaolu.

Ms.Sonariwowas the lead curator of the first Nigerian pavilion at the 57th Venice Biennale and served as jury member at Dak’art Biennale in 2018, the same year she was listed by Vogue as one of the “Five Coolest Women in Lagos”

Having built Rele into an iconic Nigerian brand, Ms.Sonariwo has embarked on global domination with a move to America where Rele became the first contemporary African art gallery to set down roots in Los Angeles. Speculation is rife that a Rele London is in the works.

UgomaAdegoke started her career as a financial analyst in oil and gas before gaining some work experience in real estate, Trained in economics, business and finance, Ugoma has made a career out of pivoting as a serial entrepreneur, a veritable Jane of all trades and mistress of all. 

The LifeHouse, her first enterprise was an event center, art gallery, restaurant, yoga spot and more rolled into one. Her next venture was in fashion and design with the launch of Zebra Living. Deploying artistic expression for social impact saw her launching and playing the role of Festival Director for the Lights, Camera, Africa…film festival. Ugoma has added new feathers to her cap as gallerist, curator and tastemaker with her latest venture BLOOM Art, a portfolio gallery and private art salon set in the heart of Victoria Island, Lagos.

As founding director and chief curator at BLOOM Art, Ugoma has curated and produced art exhibitions with some of the most exciting and accomplished modern and contemporary artists including MurainaOyelami, Tam Fiofori, LemiGhariokwu, Victor Ehikhamenor, to name a few. In 2007, she organised and curated a major exhibition of Professor ObioraUdechukwu’s works – his first showcase in Nigeria in over 20 years. 

•Toni Kan is a Lagos based writer.