{"title":"Moyosore Martins","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg style=\"max-height: 300px; max-width:55%\" src=\"https:\/\/helloart-prod-bucket.s3.ca-central-1.amazonaws.com\/media\/artist\/moyosore-martins\/moyosore-martins-profile.jpg\"\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMóyòsóré Martins is a self-taught mixed-media artist. Raised in Lagos, Nigeria by a Brazilian father and a Nigerian mother from Ekiti state, Martins adopted a paintbrush and pencil at a young age as instruments to express his innately curious and spiritual nature. Through his work, Martins blends his traditional Yoruba cultural roots with his contemporary vision of art.\r\u003cbr\u003e\r\u003cbr\u003eMartins’ artwork combines figurative, abstract, and narrative elements drawn from his unique life experience and journey from Nigeria to his Bronx studio. His work is deeply symbolic and frequently features cultural and personal iconography found consistently throughout his work.\r\u003cbr\u003e\r\u003cbr\u003eMartins’ richly textured paintings feature bold brushstrokes, thick oil paint, drawings, scribbles, collaged materials, and text. The vibrant, heavily layered canvases are interspersed with spiritual elements and wishes manifested and fulfilled. Martins also works in three-dimensional form working in clay and plasticine, as well as works that combine found objects and ephemera that he finds meaning in.\r\u003cbr\u003e\r\u003cbr\u003eAs Martins describes:\r\u003cbr\u003e\r\u003cbr\u003eMy artwork is intentionally raw. I like to use a lot of different materials and have rough-cut edges on the canvas. The paintings are textured with scratches, scribbles, and mud-like paint, as well as clay, liquid plastic, oil sticks, chunky layers of oil paint. I layer the background and then deconstruct them, which gives the feeling of wear and tear on the canvas. No painting is alike as each has symbolic patterns and encrypted messages hidden within it. I want to merge the vision with the given and the new world that I live in now. The word “Why?” is seen in a lot of the work because it leaves you asking the same question.\r\u003cbr\u003e\r\u003cbr\u003eForbidden by his father to create or study art, Martins spent his college years in Ghana and the Ivory Coast studying computer science. He immigrated to New York City in 2015 to further pursue his artistic ambitions. Martins’ artwork has been exhibited at the Varenne Contemporary (Geneva), TrafficArts (New York, Paris), TANG Contemporary (Hong Kong), Crossing Art Gallery (New York), Nassau County Museum (Roslyn, NY), Path Gallery (Los Angeles, CA), Robert Fontaine Gallery (Miami, Fl.), Dacia Gallery (New York, NY), Heath Gallery (New York, NY), Pulpo Gallery (Murnau, Germany) and Long-Sharp Gallery (Indiannapolis, IN).\r\u003cbr\u003e\r\u003cbr\u003eMartins bridges abstract, figurative, and iconographic symbolism. He expresses the beauty in the figure and the depth of its subject; he obsesses with a cartoon-like character that imbues his iconography and that has a deep symbolic meaning. His approach is narrative and realistic in the early works, returning to his childhood memories. The African statue is always present and spiritually meaningful in his work. He is fascinated with contemporary plastic toy statues and collectibles from artists like Kaws, representing everything different in juxtaposition to the traditional Yaruba figures. A seminal work, “Watchman,” resonates; the painting is a study of the Yaruba figure and is interpreted by Martins as the man taking on his destiny, with a nod to his experience while employed as a night watchman in the Bronx—a lasting impression.\r\u003cbr\u003e\r\u003cbr\u003eMartins expresses the emotion of the characters he paints, the backgrounds layered, manipulated, scratched, and then infused with text. He places himself in the canvas, in the artwork, in spirit and name, even his birthdate. He scribbles words, mathematical formulas, mantras, and prayers. He visually expresses his internal conversation, which shifts as his world does—as a visual biography. He resists being put in a box. His unique use of materials and story is the cord that ties his work together. His work expresses an internal conversation and what he is experiencing at a given moment. His artwork and craft grow as his career expands, and he receives increasing attention for his work. He looks back, reflecting on his path and where he has come from, both as a person and artistically. Entrenched with personal symbolism, every element of a painting has a purpose and a specific meaning to him, much like a morse code. The multiple eyes symbolize his own spiritual “all-seeing”; the clusters of floating eyeballs represent a feeling that all eyes are on him, being “seen,” his work being seen. The mouth, large and slightly aggressive, describes the intensity of the experience of people talking about him. The etched words are like a mantra to manifest his vision.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eARTIST’S STATEMENT\u003c\/h4\u003e\u003cp\u003eMóyòsórè Martins is a self-taught Afro-futurist Contemporary artist whose work is rooted in memory, spirituality, and transformation. Born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria, he grew up in a disciplined household that instilled structure, resilience, and respect, while nurturing a deeply curious and intuitive inner world. As the youngest in a large, blended family, he often felt different—an experience that continues to shape his artistic voice. His name, meaning “grateful,” reflects the foundation of his practice, which draws from grief, protection, and ancestral connection.\r\u003cbr\u003eAfter studying computer science in Ghana, Móyò immigrated to Harlem in 2015 with little more than faith and vision. Art returned to him during a period of personal transition, and in 2018, while working as a night security guard, he began developing what would become his most iconic figure: The Watchman. Inspired by his lived experience and Yoruba symbolism, The Watchman represents vigilance, protection, and spiritual awareness—a bridge between past and present.\r\u003cbr\u003eBy 2019, Móyò committed fully to his practice, opening his first studio in the Bronx and building a disciplined ritual of creation, often working from midnight to sunrise. His work—layered, raw, and expressive—blends Yoruba heritage with American pop culture, forming a distinct Afro-futurist language.\r\u003cbr\u003eIn 2023, he returned to Ghana to work with foster children, reinforcing his mission to create, give back, and expand The Watchman beyond the studio. For Móyò, success is not defined by accolades, but by freedom, purpose, and legacy—using art as a tool for truth, healing, and cultural impact. \r\u003cbr\u003eThis spring, Móyò presented work in the Republic of Sierra Leone Pavilion at the 61st Venice Biennale while simultaneously opening his first solo exhibition in Italy, The Great Boom!, at Upsilon Gallery in Milan. His paintings and mixed-media works have successfully sold at auction at Sotheby's, Phillips, and The Coral Collective (alongside artists like OSGEMEOS, Dustin Yellin, and Rocco Ritchie).\r\u003cbr\u003eNow back in New York, Móyò is creating new work and entering an exciting next phase of his practice. I'm beginning conversations with potential partners for this next chapter and would love to introduce you to his work, his vision, and where he sees the practice going next.\r\u003cbr\u003eMóyò has spent the last decade building a highly distinctive visual language informed by Yoruba cosmology, personal mythology, and contemporary culture fused with Afro-futurism inspired by Americana Pop Art. His work has attracted an international collector base, appeared at auction through Sotheby's and Phillips, and is increasingly finding resonance within institutional conversations around diasporic identity, symbolism, and transformation.\r\u003cbr\u003eSince starting in 2016, he has received consistent press coverage, including annual features in Forbes, as well as coverage in WWD, Flaunt Magazine, Whitehot Magazine, Art Africa Magazine and more.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[],"url":"https:\/\/helloart.com\/collections\/moyosore-martins.oembed","provider":"helloart","version":"1.0","type":"link"}