Promise O’nali

Born in Rivers State, Nigeria, Promise O’nali is a Nigerian artist who took an interest in art from a young age. After drawing inspiration from comic books, he furthered his studies in painting at the University of Nigeria Nsukka. O’nali's fascination with Nigerian artistic techniques led him to the Uli practice, known commonly in Southeastern Nigeria.  

Promise O’nali.

To learn more about Promise O’nali’s practice, check out his website, or follow him on Instagram.

In pursuit of beauty and consciousness, O’nali's abstract and geometric elements evoke one's journey of self-discovery and the enlightenment of Igbo traditions. O’nali's elements are characterised by bold and vibrant colours, painted within male and female patterns forming concepts of consciousness.

Cosmopolitan, 2020. 10.16 cm x 10.16 cm, acrylic on canvas. Courtesy of Promise O’nali. 

Uli is a celebrated traditional Igbo art form that has inspired the generation of Nigerian artists.  

The indigenous practice is a form of body adornment and murals painted mainly by women.  In the Igbo culture, the young women are decorated with Uli art, characterised by lines in straight or circular forms. It is believed that it enhances and strengthens the woman.  

O’nali modernises the traditional method through his practice by drawing together his interests in Igbo art forms, abstracted figuration and his dynamic use of colour. In doing so, he brings ancient knowledge and the community's beliefs about womanhood, spirituality and nature to the fore. Consequently, O’nali awakens these beliefs for untapped audiences through his artistic abilities in storytelling.  

Congruent Consciousness, 2020. 20.32 cm x 20.32 cm, mixed media on canvas. Courtesy of Promise O’nali. 

In works such as Congruent Consciousness (2020), the red and blue Uli patterns travel through the canvas to translate a notion of being at ease. In it, the artist incorporates other mediums such as wire, fibre, metal and thread with Uli lines to draw the viewer to its three-dimensional form. In this picture, he leads the viewer to the notion of 'congruent consciousness' by depicting subjects as eerie, eyes shut, often drawn as portraits with a distant gaze. 

According to the artist, Uli is an embodiment and a simile of creation, an attempt to create a unifying journey of consciousness. In particular, he does this by expanding the concept of linear methods of artistic creation to pose scientific questions in the communal rite of the human experience. He invites the viewer to look beyond the canvas's colours and materiality.  

Inclusion, 2018. 9.14 cm x 11.68 cm, mixed media. Courtesy of Promise O’nali. 

Within every work, he alludes to tales of being. In doing so, he draws the spectator to the fusion of the subliminal.  As he manipulates the colour of gold, a religious setting underlined with his signature patterned rendition of the human skin is formed. He embraces the colours of nature in most paintings to illustrate a concept of cosmopolitanism. For O’nali, painting is a rhyme of stories in which he gathers and narrates tales of uncanny and philosophical entities of life.  

Through the looking glass, 2017. Mixed media on canvas. Courtesy of Promise O’nali. 

O’nali has participated in many exhibitions, including solo and group shows in Nigeria. Most recently, he was in a collaborative show in London with Brunei Gallery contemporary, which explored the cultural influence of Uli and the artistic conversation of contemporary art.  

Later this month, O’nali will also present his first solo show, 'falling in Dream,' in London. The show will follow a series of works which invite the viewer to delve into desires and dreams of our realities. In addition, he hopes to exhibit his works internationally.  

Click to view Promise O’nali’s Exhibition CV.

Horcelie Sinda

Contributing Writer, MADE IN BED