LAGOS.- Acclaimed international art fair ART X Lagos today announced its new 2020 dates after postponing from its originally-scheduled dates due to the recent #EndSARS protests that called for an end to police brutality in Nigeria.

The fifth edition of ART X Lagos will now take place online on ARTXLAGOS.COM and Artsy from 2-9 December with the theme ‘Present States; Shared Futures’. This year’s fair invites audiences to interact with 200 works from leading artists across Africa and the Diaspora, and will provide a place for communities around the world to contemplate society’s shared demands and expectations for tomorrow, and to meditate on new ideas for how our global community might move forward together.




ART X Lagos 2020 offers up new perspectives on histories grounded in Africa and its people. The ten galleries presenting works are: Bloom Art, Kó (formerly Arthouse - The Space), Nike Art Gallery, Ed Cross Fine Art, Galerie MAM Douala, Nubuke Foundation, LouiSimone Guirandou Gallery, SMO Contemporary Art, Galerie Cécile Fakhoury and Out of Africa Gallery.

Tokini Peterside, Founder & CEO of ART X Collective, said: “With the whirlwind of protests that have swept across Nigeria, the ongoing pandemic being experienced around the world, and the global reckoning with centuries of inequality and violence against black bodies, 2020 has been a year of awakening. Against this backdrop, we feel privileged to be able to present our fifth edition fair, themed ‘Present States, Shared Futures’, which will seek to proffer new ideas on how our global and national communities can move forward, assuredly, despite the challenges in our midst.”

In October, ART X Collective announced a support initiative for photographers and filmmakers who captured the #EndSARS protests. In just two days, this initiative which was earmarked for 100 artists, received close to 1,000 applications for assistance. At the rescheduled fair in December, ART X Lagos will showcase some of the important images captured by these artists in a special curated project titled New Nigeria Studios. Peterside added: “We will continue to work to amplify these important artists’ voices in the coming weeks, and champion the art and creativity that contributes tangibly to the movement for a New Nigeria.”

ART X Talks will return with a series of poignant virtual conversations, while ART X Live! will present ‘Like Someone’s Watching’ - a performance film featuring a dynamic line-up of Nigeria’s fastest rising music and art talent, speaking to their aspirations for liberation and self-determination in this present moment. The fair’s newest platform ART X Review will present ‘The Wrap Up’, a conversation for emerging artists with Njideka Akunyili-Crosby, discussing the growth, place and potential of the artist in today’s world.