EMMANUEL OSAHOR THINGS ONCE SEEN
Saturday, October 17th - Saturday, November 7th
Image by Fifo Adebakin
Nicholas Metivier Gallery is thrilled to present Things Once Seen. This marks Osahor’s first solo exhibition with the gallery. “How do we pay attention to things that are smaller than us or so distant from us that they seem small?,” Emmanuel Osahor asks through his new body of work. Painted from a collection of photographs taken over the past two years, the paintings in Things Once Seen depict environments the artist encounters on a daily basis in his neighbourhood in the north of Toronto. Osahor contemplates how the sphere of your everyday life can provide a space for reflection and daydreaming. For Osahor, this space is realised in his garden and those of friends and neighbors. Osahor calls us to observe every corner: resident birds, the swirling pattern on fences, and plants being watered. In these most recent works, Osahor uses distemper, a combination of pigments mixed with glue, on linen. This imbues the surfaces of the paintings with an ethereal quality that seems to invite meditation.
Emmanuel Osahor Hydrangea, 2026 oil on linen 45 x 36 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Hammock at Dusk, 2025 distemper on linen 72 x 90 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Birdsong, 2026 distemper on linen 12 x 16 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Summer's End, 2025 distemper on linen 45 x 36 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Figure in the garden (study 2), 2026 distemper on linen 30 x 24 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Passages, 2025 distemper on linen 60 x 48 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Seven days a week, 2026 oil on linen 12 x 16 in., (each) Opposite: Detail of Seven days a week (Torrit Grey), 2026
Emmanuel Osahor Dandelions (M and I), 2026 oil on linen 30 x 24 1/4 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Near 14 Holmesdale (Fairbank Memorial Park), 2026 oil on canvas 90 x 72 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Rubber tree in winter, 2026 distemper on linen 30 x 16 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Study for Near 14 Holmesdale II, 2026 oil on linen
16 x 12 in.
Emmanuel Osahor In anticipation of good weather, 2026 distemper on linen 16 x 12 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Study for Near 14 Holmesdale, 2026 distemper on linen
16 x 12 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Study for Soon Home, 2026 oil on linen 12 x 16 in.
Emmanuel Osahor Soon Home, 2026 distemper on linen 72 x 90 in.