Yagazie Emezi | Lagos
Photo: courtesy of the artist
Yagazie Emezi
Nigeria born 1989
Megacities, Level 3
NGV International
View on map
STATEMENT
‘I moved to Lagos and it is here that I discovered my language to be photography. Bits of the city reminded me of my home in Aba, Abia State, a south-eastern region of Nigeria. Being consistently homesick and nostalgic, I started taking pictures with my phone of places and faces I found familiar. Everything grew from there.’
ABOUT
Yagazie Emezi is a Nigerian artist and self-taught photojournalist focused on stories surrounding African women and their health, sexuality, education and human rights. Having worked extensively across Africa, Emezi also covers stories on identity and culture, social justice, climate change and migration. Her art practice uses photography and sculpture to construct visual critiques of Nigeria’s socio-political state and the roles media play in it, pulling from history and current events. Emezi’s work has been widely published and exhibited and in 2023 she was included in the prestigious New Photography exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Sound & music by Aunty Rayzor.
The NGV warmly thanks the Orloff Family Charitable Trust, and Barry Janes and Paul Cross for their support.