Adama

IDRIS HABIB (B. 1977)  

Adama  

signed and dated 'H. Idris 2020-2021' (lower right)  

acrylic and Dutch wax fabric on canvas  

66 1/4 x 52 3/4 inches (168.3 x 134 cm)  

Executed 2020-21.

PROVENANCE:  

The Contemporary Art Modern Projects, Miami  

Acquired from the above by the present owner

NOTES:  

Born in 1977 in Accra, Ghana, and based in New York, Idris Habib is a contemporary artist working across painting, collage, and textile-based assemblage, Habib incorporates Dutch wax fabric and other textiles into his compositions, following in the tradition of luminaries like Yinka Shonibare in transforming materials associated with trade, fashion, and diasporic exchange into powerful vehicles for storytelling. His practice reflects an ongoing engagement with the layered histories embedded within textiles and adornment, while also examining the ways portraiture can communicate dignity, resilience, and personal presence. Through richly textured surfaces and carefully composed figures, Habib creates works that balance intimacy with monumentality.

Executed in 2020–21, Adama exemplifies the artist’s distinctive fusion of painting and textile collage. Rendered in acrylic and Dutch wax fabric on canvas, the work centers a commanding figure whose presence is heightened through the interplay of patterned material and painted form. Habib’s incorporation of wax fabric introduces both visual dynamism and cultural specificity, referencing the long and complex history of these textiles within West African identity and commerce. The fabric fragments function not merely as decorative elements, but as repositories of memory, movement, and social meaning.

Habib’s compositions often emphasize stillness and psychological depth, allowing his subjects to occupy space with quiet authority. In Adama, the contrast between richly patterned textiles and areas of restrained painterly treatment creates a tension between surface ornamentation and emotional interiority. The artist’s careful attention to gesture, posture, and texture lends the figure a sculptural presence, while the layered construction of the canvas reflects broader themes of fragmentation and reconstruction that recur throughout contemporary diasporic art practices. Through this synthesis of material and portraiture, Habib transforms the individual subject into a meditation on identity, heritage, and belonging.

Habib’s work has been exhibited in galleries and art fairs across Africa, Europe, and the United States, contributing to the growing international visibility of contemporary Ghanaian painting. His practice has been recognized for its innovative integration of textile traditions within contemporary portraiture, situating his work within broader conversations surrounding material culture, migration, and Black representation in contemporary art.