Ekow Nimako is a Ghanaian-Canadian, internationally exhibiting artist who crafts futuristic and whimsical sculptures using black LEGO® elements. Rooted in his childhood practice and intrinsic creativity, Nimako’s formal arts education and background as a lifelong multidisciplinary artist inform his process and signature aesthetic. His fluid building style, coupled with the Afrofuturistic themes of his work, beautifully transcend the geometric medium to embody organic and fantastical silhouettes.
The evolution of his large-scale figurative installations led to the equestrian monument Cavalier Noir, conceptualized in collaboration with Director X in 2018. The monochromatic unicorn and warrior rider not only embodied hope and heroism, but also subverted the dominant imagination of public monuments while centering underrepresented Black narratives.
Nimako’s installation To Feed the Village, the Young Must Grow, presented a tender outdoor gardenscape concerned with the transmittance of sanctuary and harmony for vulnerable beings. The exhibit debuted at Berlin’s Urban Contemporary Art Biennale hosted by Urban Nation Museum for Urban Contemporary Art in 2019. In 2020, Nimako’s body of work Building Black AMORPHIA presented by the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto, displayed artworks that thread together elements of West African mask making traditions and organic forms to create an amorphous and fantastical tapestry.
Nimako’s medieval Africa inspired series Building Black Civilizations opened in 2019 at the Aga Khan Museum. The architectural pieces explored speculative narratives of sub-Saharan Africa during the middle ages, with detailed references to African architecture, Islamic civilizations, and Africanfuturism. The anticipated follow-up to this exhibition, Building Black Civilizations: Journey of 2000 Ships premiered at Dunlop Gallery in Regina, Saskatchewan in the fall of 2022, and has 2025 tour dates at the Art Gallery of Alberta, the Kelowna Art Gallery, and the Robert McLaughlin Gallery, respectively.
In 2024 the LEGO Group collaborated with Nimako again at their headquarters in Bilund, Denmark, and in Paris, France to launch their global #superpowerofplay campaign. Along with three other international contemporary artists and curators, Nimako was officially recognized by the company as a Play Ambassador, culminating in the exhibition of his figurative sculpture, Asaase Efua.
Nimako has exhibited works in Canada, United States, Germany, France, Korea, UAE, Austria, and the United Kingdom. His artworks have been acquired by the TD Bank Corporate Art Collection, Global Affairs Canada Visual Art Collection, Urban Nation Museum for Urban Contemporary Art, the Seneca Art Collection, and the Aga Khan Museum Permanent Collection.
CV
PUBLIC ARTWORKS
2018 - Cavalier Noir, Nuit Blanche, Scarborough Civic Centre/Toronto City Hall
2016 – Grey Matters, The Brain Project/Baycrest Foundation, Union Station | Yorkdale Shopping Centre
2015 – Silent Knight, Nuit Blanche, Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2024 - Building Black Mythos: Divinities, (Asaase Efua), Superpower Studios/Gaite Lyrique - Paris, FR
2024 - We See Far, ELLEPHANT Gallery/AbTec Studios - Montreal, QC
2024 - power, Onsite Gallery, OCADU, Toronto, ON
2024 - Building Black Mythos: DIVINITIES, ExtraOrdinary! The Exploratorium, San Fransisco, CA
2023 - Building Black Mythos, The Glass Works - Barnsley, UK
2022 - A Scared Place, Cooper Union - NYC, USA
2022 - Building Black Mythos, Ferens Art Gallery - Hull, UK
2022 - Building Black Mythos, Rugby Museum and Art Gallery - Rugby UK,
2021 - Building Black Mythos, Shrewsbury Museum & Art Gallery - Shropshire, UK
2020 - Building Black Mythos, Gracefield Arts Centre - Dumfries, UK
2020 - Building Black AMORPHIA, EXPO 2020, Dubai, UAE
2020 - Building Black Mythos, The Harley Gallery, Nottinghamshire - UK
2020 - Cavalier Noir, Brick Campus - Jeju-do, KOR
2020 - Building Black AMORPHIA, Robert Kananaj Gallery - Toronto, CA
2020 - Building Black AMORPHIA, Harbourfront Centre - Toronto, CA
2019 - Building Black Mythos, 20-21 Visual Art Centre - North Lincolnshire, UK
2019 - To Feed the Village the Young Must Grow, Urban Nation Museum for Urban Contemporary Art - Berlin, GER
2019 - Fly High, Brick Campus - Seoul, KOR
2018 - Cavalier Noir, Nuit Blanche, Scarborough Civic Centre - Toronto, CA
2017 - CreativeTO, Artscape Young Place - Toronto, CA
2016 - Intergalactic Noise, Art Gallery of Mississauga - Mississauga, CA
2015 - Building Black, Capacity 3 Gallery - Guelph, CA
2015 - Black Future Month, Ontario College of Art and Design - Toronto, CA
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2024 - Building Black Civilizations: Journey of 2000 Ships (Dame Dame, Wawa Aba)
2024 - Building Black Civilizations: Journey of 2000 Ships (Asamando), The Arts Building, University of Wyoming,
2023 - Building Black Civilizations: Journey of 2000 Ships, Dunlop Gallery - Regina, Saskatchewan
2022- The Great Turtle Race - Billund, Denmark
2019 - Building Black: Civilizations, Aga Khan Museum - Toronto, CA
2015 - Building Black, Capacity 3 Gallery - Guelph, CA
2014 - Building Black, Impressario Gallery - Cobourg, CA
2014 - Building Black, Daniels Spectrum - Toronto, CA
EDUCATION
2007 - 2010 - BFA: Studio, York University
RESIDENCIES
2023 - Williston Northampton School - Grubb Gallery Artist Residency
2018 - The Power Plant Gallery - Power Youth Residency/Winter
2016 – The Art Gallery of Mississauga - Roots and Branches
2015 - The Power Plant Gallery - Power Youth Residency/Winter
2015 - The Power Plant Gallery - Power Youth Residency/Fall
COMMISSIONS
2022 - The Great Turtle Race, The LEGO® Group
2021 - TML Leaf - Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment
2020 - Darth Myles - NBA Indiana Pacers, Myles Turner
2020 - American Eel - Toronto Zoo
2018 - Cavalier Noir, City of Toronto - Nuit Blanche
