Uzo Njoku
East Coast, USA
“Art isn’t just on the canvas, you can do anything.”
Uzo Njoku is a fine artist who is currently based in the East Coast. She has received worldwide success following the heavy gaze on black creators in the summer of 2020, following the murder of Eric Garner. She is well versed in many mediums, however, she enjoys focusing on figurative subject matters “People and intriguing poses and very heavy glances” and pattern work. She has been recently keeping her collection focused on men and women but wants to continue to evolve as she prepares to enter her Master of Fine Arts Degree Program. As an artist Uzo understands the importance of making her art accessible under her terms, while also preserving the value of her work.
How did you get your start in art?
Uzo: “I wasn't originally in the art field. I was going to the University of Virginia to study statistics and I didn't really like it. My classmates were very happy to be there. I knew that if I continued I would eventually quit. So I took a year off school. During that year I just started to do little cute paintings from my house. I would post them and everyone would be like oh this is so great and that's how I started practicing every day and eventually changed my major.”
After learning how Uzo got her introduction into the art world, we dove deeper and started to discuss the education steps that she took. During this part of the interview Uzo is very transparent and insightful, she breaks down the pros and cons of formal education.
“I graduated from undergrad in May 2019 and then I didn't get the fellowship I wanted. A fellowship is a year of being able to just focus on art. It would have been a great stepping stone to enter into my masters program. I want to do an MFA because when you start looking at funding for artists, you either have to have ten years of professional experience or an MFA. An MFA is faster to achieve, so that was the goal I had in mind. At that time I didn’t have a studio and I didn’t realize how important that was. So during this time I started to approach the digital art space. Undergraduate programs in visual arts do not do a good job in preparing students for the art world after college. A lot of students make the mistake of creating artwork for those classes, that’s not a strong portfolio to send into a masters program. School is graded hours of practice. It's good to be there for the structured hours of practice and being amongst people who have the same mindset as you. It's also nice to grow through peer critiques. For people who did not have that preliminary education program, because you aren’t in a structured program you have to paint, practice, and explore different things almost everyday.”
Uzo also recommended trying to recreate paintings as practice to learn about various brushstrokes and color mixes that may or may not work for you. She also urged people to look into artist residency programs because they are based on a person's body of work rather than a degree.
Uzo likes to maintain transparency about her methods and she is always interacting and guiding younger artists online. She stated that her drive to help comes from not having much guidance in her early days. She would study the portfolios and resumes of artists that she liked and popular artists, step by step to see how she could align her work with those examples. She also studied the fine arts portfolios of Ivy League students.
How do you keep yourself open to the changes that your art may take?
“Art isn’t just on the canvas, you can do anything.” Uzo keeps herself adapted to changes in her art by not sticking to one medium. She has the ability to create digitally and she enjoys that medium for the speed that it allows her to possess when she is conceptualizing new ideas. If she tires of painting or digital art, she has a plethora of other mediums to use at her fingertips. Such as furniture design, pattern work, wallpaper design, and fashion. She credits her wide knowledge of various art mediums to her time at the University of Arts London, London, UK. She spent her last semester abroad in London where her art program had a more avant-garde approach. During this time Uzo was in close proximity with other artists who were pursuing a myriad of things such as jewelry making, screen printing, and welding. In the UK she learned the importance of conceptualizing your art and making sure that it comes together in a coherent manner. They pushed her to be more than a painter, she learned how to make rugs and met many people outside of school, in London’s vibrant craft-making community.
When she registered her business in August 2018 she did not realize the extent to which it would take off. Her first product was her coloring book that she released in order to secure funding during the summer before her senior year. Once she saw what she was capable of and had a steady cash flow, she never allowed her merchandise to be stifled. Uzo also spoke about the importance of support from family, friends, and followers and how word of mouth has played an important role in her growth.
For brand longevity, Uzo leaves us with the wise advice that “you have to spend money to make money.” She also spoke about the importance of ads, customer service, opening her store up to international customers, and how creating an experience for your customer is paramount. “These are things that help with customer retention and getting past viral recognition.” Uzo puts in the effort to make every order feel personalized. She genuinely loves seeing how different people decide to frame and highlight her work in their homes. She also keeps a good team around her. “Luckily, I have a team now and I prefer to hire people who were at that age that I was struggling the most. Right out of high school and during the early stages of college.” Uzo understands that an experience at a good company can be hard to attain, so she pays it forward by giving younger artists the opportunity to get experience. She also wants to help prove to parents that being in the art industry can be very successful. She collaborated with 16-year-old designer Yao Bansah to make the puffer jacket that she designed.
In May of 2021, Uzo had a solo exhibition called “A Space of My Own” at the Voltz Clarke Gallery in New York City. Here, she displayed a variety of paintings, along with wallpaper, furniture, and a puffer coat, all designed by her. The bold and beautiful images captivated the crowd so much that the gallery extended the length of her show. At the time of this interview, Uzo was getting ready for her next show in Dubai and told me about her upcoming art studio opening in Tribeca that will be open to the public. It is hard not to be inspired and motivated by the talent and mindset that Uzo embodies. I urge you to visit her website uzonjoku.com and follow her on Instagram @uzo.art and on Twitter @uzoart.
-Lex Lavish
“For people who did not have that preliminary education program, because you aren’t in a structured program you have to paint, practice, and explore different things almost everyday.”
