Lagos & West Africa Market Overview
Lagos enters November as the most closely watched date on the West African art calendar. ART X Lagos returns to the Federal Palace Hotel for its 11th edition from November 5 to 8, opening a new decade for the fair after last year’s tenth-anniversary edition. The main section lists twelve galleries, nine of them Nigerian, and a spotlight section adds three emerging Nigerian spaces.
This year’s ART X Icon exhibition, Ladi Kwali: Beyond the Vessel, is curated by Dr. Jareh Das. It revisits the pioneering Gbari potter (1925–1984) through ceramics and archival material from the National Museum, Lagos. The fair lands midway through the fifth Lagos Biennial, which is curated by Folakunle Oshun under the title “The Museum of Things Unseen” and runs from October 17 to December 18. In London, 1-54 has just closed its 14th edition at Somerset House.
The commercial backdrop is selective. Sotheby’s dissolved its dedicated African art department in April 2025, leaving Bonhams as the main standalone auction program. Its March 19, 2026, sale totaled $2.35 million, below the low estimate, with 66% of lots sold.
Individual results nonetheless diverged. Obiora Udechukwu’s Delicate burden reached $37,600 against a low estimate of roughly $2,700. MoMAA’s 2026 outlook rates the $1,000–$50,000 band as “strong” and the $500,000–$5 million band as “mixed.” Headline records remain concentrated at the top: Njideka Akunyili Crosby and Amoako Boafo each hold an auction record of about $3.4 million.
That leaves the mid-market primary tier as the most accessible point of entry. The five artists below are drawn from MutualArt partner galleries. Where a price is public, it sits within the $1,000–$50,000 band.
Lagos & West Africa: Five Artists to Watch
nnenna okore
Nnenna Okore, All Things Must Grow in Time, ca. 2023, jute fiber, cheesecloth, wire and dye | Inquire with Gallery
Offered through Black Liquid Art in Rome, Nnenna Okore (Nigerian, b. 1975) builds sculpture and installation from cheesecloth, burlap, jute, paper and wire. Teasing, twisting, dyeing and sewing produce forms that echo roots, veins and flora. The work turns on ecology, decay and renewal, and on Igbo material culture.
Okore was born in Canberra, Australia, and raised in Nsukka, Nigeria. She is now based in Chicago, where she teaches at North Park University. She took part in the 29th São Paulo Bienal (2010) and the Brugge Triënnale (2021). Her solo exhibitions include shows at October Gallery in London (2008, 2011, 2017) and the Stanley Museum of Art in Iowa (2023). Her work is held by the Newark Museum, Channel 4 and the World Bank.
Black Liquid Art lists two of her works on MutualArt, both with price on request. One is the large wall sculpture All Things Must Grow in Time; the other is the earlier Ashioke IV (2007).
Kelani Abass
Kelani Abass, Scrap of Evidence (Ori ko Epe), 2024. Digital print, cornerstone, wooden block, letterpress type, acrylic and oil on board. Inquire with Gallery
Offered through Efiɛ Gallery in Dubai, Kelani Abass (Nigerian, b. 1979) works from archival photographs. He layers painting, printmaking and sculptural techniques to explore the archive, memory and Nigeria’s independence era. Abass was born in Lagos, where he still lives and works, and he trained in painting at Yaba College of Technology, graduating in 2007.
He won first prize in painting at the 3rd Black Heritage Prize (2010). His exhibitions include [Re:] Entanglements at the National Museum, Lagos (2019) and the Casablanca Biennale (2020). Princeton University Art Museum holds his Casing History 25 (2017).
His auction record is modest but documented. Casing History 5 (2016) sold on March 15, 2022 for £3,276 (approx. USD$4,300), 31% above estimate. Efiɛ Gallery was founded in 2021 by the Mintah family and is based at Alserkal Avenue. It lists him among the 17 artists on its roster.
