Akachukwu Chukwuemeka – Akabeks
Akachukwu Chukwuemeka – artist name Akabeks – was born in 1971 at Amata Mgbowo in Nigeria. He is a 1998 graduate of painting from the University of Nigeria in Nsukka in South Nigeria.
His artworks are his personal dialogues with his environment: They are like a collection of short stories where he explores social, political, cultural, and religious conversations in the neo-colonial environment. Each piece is a complete narrative, yet each completes another; they are like the tales of a society, where the story of each individual and a group come together to create the complete story.
Akabeks wants his art to be seen as a collection of short stories to occupy a spot in the soul of anybody who makes contact with it, to probe their quiet moments thought processes, and calm them like the ocean settling down after high tide.
Exhibited unx-art artworks originate from his series 'Forms from my Sky', when Akabeks decided to break out from the classic conventional oil canvas and traditional 'Uli'. The series was sparked by childhood memories of gazing at the twilight sky. It embarks on a dreamlike and dazzling series featuring a hundred paintings that showcase his ingenuity and love for experimenting.
He currently resides and practices in Abuja, Nigeria.
What Fabric Holds: A Material Examination of Memory
18 March – 16 April 2026 | KUNSThouse H30, Zurich
Set within a historic former silk factory, What Fabric Holds explores memory through textile, surface, and ritual form. Featuring six contemporary artists from Nigeria and Sierra Leone, the exhibition proposes that history is materially constructed rather than merely narrated. Here, pigment and gesture transmit memory through spatial logic.
Through the Eyes of Gaga: Louise Metzger & the shaping of modern artistic practice in Sierra Leone
February 14–21, 2026 | unx-art gallery, Leicester Peak, Freetown
Discover the enduring legacy of Louise “Gaga” Metzger, the visionary educator and founder who shaped Sierra Leonean modernism. Explore her textile-inspired monoprints alongside works by the mentees she inspired. This exhibition celebrates artistic transmission, honoring a spirit that built the foundations of our visual culture.
Wetin bɛ: Freetown in Retrospect
October 25–26, 2025 | unx-gallery, Leicester Peak, Freetown
A quiet meditation on Freetown’s disappearing wooden houses—the bod ose built by freed Africans in the late 18th century. In translucent washes of colour, John Francis transforms erasure into memory, painting architecture as living history. Through water and light, he asks a simple question with a heavy echo: Wetin bɛ? — what happened?
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Regards croisés: west Africa reflected on lake geneva
July 31 – August 20, 2025 | Clinique de Genolier, Switzerland
An unexpected dialogue between West African contemporary art and Swiss serenity. Eight artists from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo explore resilience, identity, and healing in unx-art’s second Swiss exhibition, set in a space where care and creativity meet.
Africa Basel: Held in memory, Forged in Form
June 18 – 21, 2025 | Ackermannshof, Basel, Switzerland
UNX Art’s exhibition Held in Memory, Forged in Form features Helen Nzete and Clément Gbegno, presenting sculptural and abstract works that reflect themes of memory, disappearance, and emotional restoration.
Matter of Now: 7 Nigerian minds in Freetown
May 16 – 24, 2025 | unx-art Gallery, Freetown, Sierra Leone
A collective exhibition presenting eight Nigerian artists delving into the complexity of the present moment — where memory, culture, and introspection intersect — in unx-art’s debut show at its Freetown gallery.
Giving Goddess: unx-art gallery space debutes
March 20 – April 30, 2025 | unx-art Gallery, Freetown, Sierra Leone
A solo exhibition by Hawa-Jane Bangura, blending digital and traditional media to celebrate African history, femininity, and solidarity. unx-art’s inaugural exhibition in Freetown introduced her empowering vision to a new audience.