Njideka Akunyili Crosby unveils Obama portrait at Chicago center
Published on 08/27/2026 at 10:39 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Njideka Akunyili Crosby's latest public commission places her layered portrait language at the center of a major civic site. As David Zwirner states, The Obamas: Springing Forth is the first official joint portrait of Barack and Michelle Obama and is on view in Chicago.
The Obama commission in Chicago
The gallery's artist page says the work was commissioned in 2026 and is installed in the main lobby of the Obama Presidential Center. The piece measures 108 x 120 inches and is listed in the collection of The Obama Foundation, Chicago.
PAFA also confirms the same commission and describes the portrait as an official dual portrait presented at the center. That makes this one of the most visible institutional placements in Akunyili Crosby's career.
Why the work matters now
The commission arrives at a moment when the artist's work also remains in major museum circulation. David Zwirner lists her in Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination at MoMA in New York, on view through July 25, 2026.
That museum presence matters because her paintings trade in intimacy, memory, and public history at the same time. The Obama portrait extends that method into a national and archival register.
More news and background on Njideka Akunyili Crosby
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How Njideka Akunyili Crosby works
Her practice combines painting, drawing, collage, and photographic transfer. David Zwirner describes the result as methodically layered compositions built from personal images, Nigerian magazines, and other mass media sources.
That material mix gives her figures and interiors a compressed density that feels both domestic and historical. The work often turns private scenes into images with public weight.
Where the artist stands now
Njideka Akunyili Crosby currently has no other live date in the 30-day window beyond the ongoing presentation of Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination at MoMA through July 25, 2026.
Njideka Akunyili Crosby at a glance
- Artist: Njideka Akunyili Crosby
- Medium / Genre: Painting, drawing, collage, photographic transfer
- Born: 1983, Enugu, Nigeria
- Place(s) of practice: Los Angeles, California
- Active since: 2011
- Key work groups: The Beautyful Ones, Dwellers, Still You Bloom in This Land of No Gardens, In The Lavender Room
- Current/last exhibition: Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination - The Museum of Modern Art, New York - December 14, 2025 to July 25, 2026
- Major collections: The Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Broad, Los Angeles; Tate, United Kingdom; The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles
- Awards: MacArthur Fellowship (2017), Prix Canson (2016), Next Generation Prize, New Museum (2015), Joyce Alexander Wein Artist Prize (2015)
- Next date: currently no announced date in the 30-day window
Frequently asked questions about Njideka Akunyili Crosby
Where is Njideka Akunyili Crosby currently on view?
Her work is on view at MoMA in Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination through July 25, 2026, and the Obama portrait is installed in Chicago.
What is the title of Njideka Akunyili Crosby's Obama commission?
David Zwirner identifies it as The Obamas: Springing Forth (2026). The work is listed at 108 x 120 inches.
Which collections hold work by Njideka Akunyili Crosby?
David Zwirner lists MoMA, The Broad, Tate, The Met, and MCA Chicago among the major public collections that hold her work.
This article was produced with a.i. support and editorially reviewed. All statements without guarantee; auction results, exhibition dates and awards may change at short notice.
