"Crowned in Contradictions" | Galveston Arts Center

"Crowned in Contradictions" is an exploration of identity at the intersection of history, culture, and irony. Kingsley Onyeiwu’s exhibition navigates the layered complexities of Afropolitanism—where colonial legacies collide with contemporary expressions, and beauty is both a celebration and a critique. The figures within Onyeiwu’s works are adorned not just with crowns, jewelry, and fabric, but with symbols that challenge singular narratives about Africa and its diaspora. They are regal yet rebellious, occupying spaces where elegance coexists with defiance. Through towering forms, muted abstractions, and satirical undertones, this body of work asks: What does it mean to be crowned by histories we inherit, subvert, and redefine?