YINKA SHONIBARE CBE RA
b. 1962, United KingdomYinka Shonibare CBE RA creates vibrant, conceptually rich artworks that challenge perceptions of identity, colonial history, and power with visually striking installations often featuring Dutch wax batik fabrics. Known internationally for works like Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle on Trafalgar Square, Shonibare has redefined the boundaries of contemporary art.
Early Years
Born in London in 1962 to Nigerian parents, Yinka Shonibare moved to Lagos, Nigeria at age three, returning to the UK as a teenager to complete his secondary education. He studied Fine Art at Byam Shaw School of Art and earned a Masters from Goldsmiths, University of London. A spinal illness at age 18 left one side of his body paralysed, shaping his approach to artmaking and leading him to direct a team of assistants. Shonibare’s dual heritage and personal experiences of disability deeply inform his exploration of ‘authenticity’, globalisation, and cultural hybridity.
Yinka Shonibare Artworks
Shonibare’s contemporary art practice interrogates cultural identity, colonialism, race, and class through sculpture, painting, installation, photography, and film. Iconic for their use of colourful ‘African’ textiles (Dutch wax prints), his artworks examine how cultural symbols circulate and acquire new meanings in postcolonial contexts.
Seminal Artworks and Developments
Gallantry and Criminal Conversation (2002)
An installation featuring headless, life-size figures in Victorian dress made with Dutch wax fabric, critically examining 18th-century aristocratic excess and its links to colonial history.
Diary of a Victorian Dandy (1998)
A photographic series reimagining Hogarth’s narrative painting in a contemporary, Black British context, highlighting issues of race and class.
Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle (2010)
Commissioned for the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, this large-scale sculpture recreates Admiral Nelson’s flagship in Dutch wax-print sails, symbolising colonial entanglements. Now a permanent feature at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.
The African Library (2018)
A monumental installation of over 6,000 books wrapped in batik textiles, each inscribed with the name of an influential figure in postcolonial Africa; shown at Fondation H, Madagascar, among other venues.
Refugee Astronaut X (2024)
A recent sculptural work from his major African solo show Safiotra [Hybridities] exploring migration and the idea of seeking refuge, reflecting ongoing global concerns.
Sanctuary City (2024) and The War Library (2024)
Unveiled at the Serpentine Gallery, London, these major new installations probe sanctuary, conflict, migration, and ecology by reimagining spaces of refuge and peace.
Select Public Commissions
- Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle, Fourth Plinth, Trafalgar Square, London – now at National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.
- Wind Sculpture VI, Royal Academy of Arts Courtyard, London
- Decolonised Structures series (2022–2024)
- Hibiscus Rising (2023), London
Select Awards and Accolades
- Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), 2019
- Elected Royal Academician, 2013
- Turner Prize nominee, 2004
- Barclays Young Artist Award, 1992
- Paul Hamlyn Visual Arts Award, 1998
- Honorary Doctorate of Letters, University of London (The Courtauld), 2021
Exhibitions
Yinka Shonibare’s works are exhibited worldwide, with major solo and group exhibitions at leading museums and galleries.
Solo Exhibitions
- Safiotra [Hybridités], Fondation H, Antananarivo, Madagascar, 2025–2026
- Suspended States, Serpentine South, London, 2024
- Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney; Brooklyn Museum, New York; Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington D.C., 2008–2009
- Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle, Fourth Plinth, Trafalgar Square, London, 2010
- James Cohan Gallery, New York, 2023
- Stephen Friedman Gallery, London, 2023
Group Exhibitions
- Venice Biennale, Nigerian Pavilion, 2024
- Documenta XI, 2002
- Tate Britain, London, 2004
- National Gallery, London, 2007
- Museum of Modern Art, New York
- National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institute, Washington D.C.
- Moderna Museet, Stockholm; Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago
More Reading
Yinka Shonibare’s practice is discussed across major publications. The Art Newspaper covered his Madagascar exhibition: ‘Shonibare was given carte blanche for his first major solo exhibition on the African continent, presenting new and iconic works that echo the complexity of postcolonial experience’.
Yinka Shonibare CBE RA FAQs
Where can I see Yinka Shonibare’s artworks?
Yinka Shonibare’s artworks can be found in public institutions including Tate Modern, London; the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich (home to Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle); the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington D.C.; Museum of Modern Art, New York; and Fondation H, Antananarivo, Madagascar, among others.
What is unique about Yinka Shonibare’s art?
Yinka Shonibare’s art uniquely interrogates themes of identity, colonialism, and cultural exchange through the use of Dutch wax-print textiles. He fuses Western art history with postcolonial critique, subverting traditional narratives in visually engaging ways.
Where was Yinka Shonibare born and where does he work?
Yinka Shonibare CBE RA was born in London, United Kingdom, in 1962, and moved to Nigeria as a child. He now lives and works in London.
Has Yinka Shonibare exhibited recently?
In 2025, Shonibare’s first major solo exhibition on the African continent opened at Fondation H, Madagascar. In 2024, he presented new work at the Serpentine South, London, and his art featured at the Venice Biennale within the Nigerian Pavilion.
Are there any random and interesting facts about Yinka Shonibare?
Shonibare’s installation The African Library includes 6,000 books printed with names of influential postcolonial African leaders and thinkers. He also often incorporates autobiographical elements, referencing his own disability and multicultural upbringing in his art.
How do you pronounce Yinka Shonibare’s name?
Yinka Shonibare is pronounced ‘YIN-ka shoh-nee-BAR-ay’.
Ocula | 2025
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