Temitayo Ogunbiyi: You will have revelations along felled branches and longer roots/routes

In her first solo exhibition in the Midwest, Lagos-based artist Temitayo Ogunbiyi draws our attention to the medicinal capacities and visual complexities of local flora, showing exquisite drawings, paintings, and sculpture that respond to the social and natural environments of Chicago. While honoring the cancer journey of a close friend who was based in Chicago, Ogunbiyi considers the conventions of botanical documentation and the health trends associated with such North American plants as pawpaw, echinacea, and milkweed.

For the first time, the Arts Club is concurrently featuring a commission by Ogunbiyi in its garden. Taking the rough form of an abacus, the installation is composed of cast grinding stones made of melted plumbing fixtures sourced in Nigeria. Through reference to the ancient mathematical tool, the abacus, the artist asks, “Who counts?”—considering counts as a verb and state of being.

The exhibition is curated by Janine Mileaf. It is made possible by a grant from Conor O’Neil; specific programming is supported by the Goethe-Institut.