Luke Agada’s (b. Lagos, Nigeria, 1992) practice examines themes of globalization, migration, and cultural dislocation. A central concept in Agada’s work is the “third space,” a psychological and spatial condition that emerges from the intersection of memory, imagination, and observed reality. Existing between globalized notions of culture and nationality, his work engenders ambiguous identities and presents a challenge to fixed definitions.

Agada’s distinctive visual language is anchored in a palette dominated by umber tones that root the work in both material and geographic sensibilities, evoking the physical landscape of his Nigerian upbringing as well as the symbolic weight of origin. Alongside references to architecture, and animal forms, Agada’s imagery is embedded within a liminal space that evokes memory as both presence and erosion. Grounded in personal experience, his work seeks broader resonance, moving beyond biographical specificity to explore shared human conditions of impermanence and the search for home.

Luke Agada received his MFA in Painting and Drawing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2023. His work has been featured in group exhibitions at institutions including the African American Museum in Philadelphia; the Hive Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing; and the African Artists’ Foundation, Lagos, amongst others. Agada has received numerous awards and fellowships including Newcity’s Breakout Artist, 2024; The James Nelson Raymond Fellowship Award, 2023; Janet and Russell Doubleday Award at The Art Students League of New York, 2022; The Helen Frankenthaler Award, 2022; George and Ann Siegel Award, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, 2021. He was an Artist-in-residence at MASS MoCA, MA, in 2023 and Dragon Hill Residence, Cannes, France in 2025. Agada currently lives and works in Chicago, IL.