Otobong Nkanga receives 2026 Finkenwerder Art Prize

With solo exhibitions at MoMA in New York and the Tate Modern in London as well as the impressive retrospective currently on view at the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris, Otobong Nkanga (born 1974 in Kano, Nigeria) is undoubtedly one of the most internationally renowned artists of our time. This is also evidenced by her participation in nearly all of the world’s most important art biennials, including the 58th Venice Biennale, documenta 14 in Kassel and Athens, the 14th Sharjah Biennial, and this year’s 36th São Paulo Biennial.

At the center of Otobong Nkanga’s artistic practice is the relationship between humanity and the Earth, and the materials extracted from it, from plants and seeds to rare earths and minerals. Based on the principle that energy is never lost, but is instead transformed into another form, Nkanga depicts metamorphoses of being in her drawings, watercolors, installations, large-scale tapestries, and performances. She is a critical observer of humanity as it interrupts natural cycles, brutally exploits the Earth, and throws it out of its natural balance. But she also shows us how adaptable nature is to changing conditions and that the Earth will ultimately continue to exist even without humanity. Her engagement with indigenous knowledge, as well as with the architectures and mythologies of the African continent, deepens Nkanga’s critical perspective on traditional European patterns of thought and current political developments in the Global North. “Support,” in both a social and an architectural sense, is essential for the existence of societal structures. Nkanga investigates potential alternative economies as well as alternative notions of support that can enrich our society once again.

Jury member Kader Attia: “With Otobong Nkanga, we are honoring an artist who captivates us with her multifaceted, poetic work—especially when she activates parts of her works in performances through music, movement, and energy. Her body becomes a medium, creating a unique connection between art, space, and life.

Main Image:Otobong Nkanga, Solid Maneuvers 2015/20
Performance by Otobong Nkanga who sings, tells stories, and performs different gestures related to industrial processes, physical labor, and the limits of human productivity Performance at Gropius Bau, Berlin, 2020