Meet the Nigerian Artist Osoranna Mojekwu Commissioned by Adidas for Its New Lagos Flagship Store
His two large-scale works for the global sportswear giant explore resilience and community, marking a personal and professional milestone for the U.S.-born creative.

Osoranna Mojekwu’s works are contemporary repositories that capture the dynamics of being young and Nigerian in today’s world.
Osoranna Mojekwu was 10 when he first moved back to Nigeria from the United States to continue his secondary school education. Like most Africans straddling multiple identities, Mojekwu found himself in the age-long struggle of not being Nigerian enough in Nigeria after leaving an all white catholic school in the States, where he had stood out for being Black. Still, Mojekwu says the five years he spent in Lagos sharpened his self-perception, and to this day, the 26-year-old visual artist continues to draw from that experience for his work.
"Those five years are ingrained in my head, [they] created the person I am today in terms of how I navigate the world and how I'm able also to navigate complications and obstacles," Mojekwu tells OkayAfrica. "It's almost like a military school where you're embedded with this strength to navigate the world, and so the pieces that I create, it's almost a pledge of thanks to the people within that community."
Last year, Adidas commissioned Mojekwu to create two large-scale art pieces for their flagship store in Lagos, Nigeria. Set to be on display in July, these artworks are Mojekwu's biggest and most ambitious projects yet, and he knew they had to represent the spirit of community and resilience from that period of his life.
"The assignment itself was titled community," Mojekwu says. "They're [Adidas] aiming to localize themselves within Nigeria. So when I was assigned the task to create a painting, that is the community I was able to reference."
Mojekwu's artworks are what he describes as journal entries. They are a constant work in collecting the experiences and insight that have shaped him as a person and as an artist. His works are also contemporary repositories that capture the dynamics of being young and Nigerian in today's world. For material, much of Mojekwu's works are layered. First comes the outline, which is painted, and then other recycled materials, from beads to threads, are used to highlight the outlines, causing a 3D, slightly hallucinogenic effect.
For the commissioned works, which took over 600 hours to complete, Mojekwu showcases the diversity within the Nigerian demographic and how that reflects contemporary Nigerian culture. In one of the artworks, multiple elongated heads stand next to each other. Their appearances differ, and so does their demeanor. One wears a hijab, and another has braids. A closer look at the painting reveals that the iconic Adidas stripes are incorporated into the background. In its messaging, these pieces are acutely aware of the intersections between sports, faith, culture, and self-expression that define many young people in Nigeria today.
"It's painting on canvas," Mojekwu says, "But it's not just two-dimensional. This piece is three-dimensional, and it's supposed to showcase the dimensions of African youth." He means this on both a metaphorical and technical level.
Starting out
Even before hosting solo shows in Lagos or creating for Adidas, Mojekwu had always known he wanted to be an artist. His first inclination about the power of art occurred when he was just six. He had shown his parents a drawing of a horse, which elicited an excitement in them that moved him.
"The truth of the matter is that at the time I was not necessarily the best at drawing figurative objects, but I just loved the experience of putting pencil to paper as your starting point and being able to go through a journey of creating whatever object that was," Mojekwu says.
"Being able to show this drawing of a horse to my dad, and him calling my mom at the office and being like, 'Come and see what Oso drew." It's those moments that I remember 20-plus years down the road. To see the light on my father's face after I showed him just this pencil drawing of a horse, that was complete nonsense. To see the reaction was something that was just so out of this world."
In many ways, Mojekwu remains electrified by the strong reaction his work receives, even after a decade of working as a visual artist.
"In one of the artworks, multiple elongated heads can be seen standing next to each other. Their appearances are different, and so is their demeanor."
Photo byDaniel Obasi
"If what I'm creating resonates with you in a certain kind of way and unlocks a certain kind of feeling for you within your own context and your own experience, that in itself is the biggest reward of being an artist."
Full circles
For Mojekwu, the journey to creating these large-scale paintings began with a solo exhibition in 2021. The exhibition, titled "Look Beneath The Surface," was filled with mixed-media art installations that address self-perception and the deception of a one-dimensional way of seeing people. A patron connected to the Adidas project purchased his work, and that is where things took off.
As someone who also grew up loving streetwear, particularly Adidas sneakers, Mojekwu considers this moment a full circle. "What's so exciting about this commission is that it's authentic and it's rooted in truth," Mojekwu says. "To be able to create a piece that explores those three pillars of brand, sport, and culture, I think those are the elements that I was able to ground myself in to create the pieces."
Ultimately, Mojekwu wants the work he has created to convey a simple but incredibly urgent message. Togetherness. "It's supposed to reflect the entire Nigerian diaspora, whether it be across cultural borders, norms, traditions, or just across our palette of diversity within the country of Nigeria. That's what this piece is supposed to reflect."
The goal is also to emphasize the rising power of community amongst young Nigerians, and the ways these collectives and support systems are powering culture.
"It's supposed to reflect the entire Nigerian diaspora, whether it be across cultural borders, whether it be across norms, traditions, and just across our palette of diversity within the country of Nigeria"
Photo byDaniel Obasi
"The whole point is to kind of show this beautiful variety of Nigerian youth and how they are sharing community within themselves," he says. "I want them to be able to see themselves in the piece, but also see others that maybe differ from themselves and have a greater appreciation for difference, and the fact that although you are one of these people within this painting, there's a world of people that you also need to have greater curiosity about.
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