Louis Oké-Agbo is unarguably one the foremost contemporary visual artists currently working in Benin, West Africa.

In his practice, Oké-Agbo pioneers a hybrid form of creative expression that speaks to the rich historical traditions of his native land. Masterfully blurring the lines between painting and fine art photography, his otherworldly images are formed through a process of superimposition and the affixing of various endemic textural elements.

The laterite soil of West Africa, the primordial flora of Benin’s sacred forests or the decaying walls of dystopian urban landscapes partially reclaimed by nature. Each substrate Oké-Agbo imprints on the bodies of his subjects, reveals the osmotic link that connects humanity with the environment, and serves as a gentle reminder that every wound we inflict upon Mother Earth, is irrevocably returned to us. 

Confronting the viewer with notions of history, race, culture, gender, identity, psychology and social inequities, the compelling visual narrative of Louis Oké-Agbo further addresses a very sensitive issue, plaguing not only African societies but humanity at large.The importance of Empathy.

Thought his non profit organisation, Vie & Solidarité, Louis Oké-Agbo has pledged to put his notoriety to the service of the less fortunate. Built as a bridge across the abyss of social isolation, the art therapy center he opened in Porto-Novo (Benin) in 2017, welcomes 'the invisibles' who populate the back alleys of his beloved city. Individuals with mental disability, too often outcasted by society just for being different, are once again able to find fulfilment in everyday life through the creative prisms of visual art.
 
Louis Oké-Agbo's commitment is of the noblest constituency, for nothing can make our life and the lives of others more beautiful than perpetual kindness.