October Gallery presents Freedom Rising: The Art of Owusu-Ankomah, a landmark posthumous exhibition honouring one of Ghana’s most visionary and internationally celebrated artists. Running from Thursday 4 September to Saturday 4 October 2025, the exhibition features a curated selection of large-scale paintings created between 2008 and 2014, highlighting the spiritual, symbolic, and philosophical depth that defined Owusu-Ankomah’s mature work.
Best known for his striking black-and-white canvases, Owusu-Ankomah created a powerful visual language built on the interplay of monumental human figures and dense symbolic environments. His early inspiration drew from the Adinkra symbols of the Akan people in Ghana, but over the years, his practice expanded to include symbols derived from fractals, astronomy, crop circles, physics, and esoteric knowledge systems, as well as original glyphs of his own creation.
At the heart of his later work is the concept of the Microcron — a glowing, circular symbol that he described as a “symbol of symbols.” Through this meta-symbol, Owusu-Ankomah explored the idea that reality is not fixed, but constructed through the symbolic systems we believe in. His paintings invite viewers into a contemplative space where the boundaries between body, spirit, and meaning dissolve.
This exhibition offers visitors a rare opportunity to engage with works that are as visually arresting as they are intellectually and spiritually resonant. The monumental figures depicted in Freedom Rising are at once grounded and transcendent — muscular forms poised within an abstract language of symbols, suspended in acts of perception, awakening, or transformation.
Born in 1956 in Sekondi, Ghana, Owusu-Ankomah lived and worked in both Ghana and Germany and exhibited internationally throughout his career. His work has been shown in leading galleries and museums across Europe, Africa, the United States, South America, and Japan. Notable appearances include the influential touring exhibition Africa Remix (2004–2007), which helped reposition contemporary African art on the global stage, and his more recent inclusion in O Quilombismo at Berlin’s Haus der Kulturen der Welt (2023). His paintings are held in prestigious collections including the British Museum, Hood Museum of Art, Detroit Institute of Arts, and Renaissance Capital in Moscow.
Owusu-Ankomah also collaborated with Giorgio Armani for the (RED) Campaign, using his art to raise awareness and funding in support of the global fight against AIDS in Africa. His ability to bridge fine art, philosophy, and global social consciousness has made his work deeply influential across generations.
The exhibition is accompanied by a Private View on Wednesday 10 September 2025 from 6.00 pm to 8.30 pm at October Gallery. All are welcome to attend and reflect on the enduring power of Owusu-Ankomah’s message — one rooted in identity, movement, and the universal quest for meaning.
Freedom Rising: The Art of Owusu-Ankomah is free to attend and open to the public Tuesday to Saturday, 12.30 pm – 5.30 pm. The gallery is located in central London, just a short walk from Holborn and Russell Square stations.
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