Njideka Akunyili Crosby - Obama Center commission and museum presence
Published on 09/01/2026 at 10:48 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Njideka Akunyili Crosby has become one of the most strategically placed painters in major museum collections over the past decade. Her dense mixed-media works currently span exhibitions at MoMA, ICA Boston and the Norton Museum, as her own CV documents and as MutualArt’s exhibition overview confirms.
Museum shows and current visibility
For 2026, Njideka Akunyili Crosby lists the group exhibition Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, running from December 14, 2025 to July 25, 2026. This show foregrounds Black portraiture and political imagery, placing her compositions alongside other global positions.
Her CV also notes To My Best Friend at the Institute of Contemporary Art Boston, scheduled from January 23 to December 31, 2026, extending her presence in the museum’s collection galleries through the year. In parallel, MutualArt lists Recognition of Art by Women: In Retrospect at the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach from March 28 to September 27, 2026, where her works anchor the RAW survey.
Museum & collection depth on view
MutualArt’s current exhibitions feed highlights how often Njideka Akunyili Crosby now appears in collection-based shows, including the long-running presentation Everything Now All At Once at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University, on view from August 21, 2025 to November 1, 2026. These placements underscore her role in shaping contemporary figurative discourse.
Her own institutional CV lists major holdings at Tate Modern, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMA New York, the Studio Museum in Harlem, and Zeitz MOCAA, among many others. This breadth of acquisitions positions her firmly in the upper tier of public collection recognition.
Further reporting on Njideka Akunyili Crosby
For more on Njideka Akunyili Crosby’s auctions, museum shows and commissions, the AD HOC NEWS archive offers additional context and market data.
The work core and commissions
Njideka Akunyili Crosby’s CV lists a 2026 commission titled The Obamas: Springing Forth for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, commissioned by the Obama Foundation. The work is conceived for the institution’s museum environment and extends her exploration of diasporic domestic space to a historic political subject.
Her practice centers on large works on paper that combine acrylic, colored pencil, photo-transfer and collage, building interior scenes where Nigerian textiles, family snapshots and Western magazine imagery intersect. Series such as The Beautyful Ones and the early solo show I Refuse to be Invisible at the Norton Museum of Art in 2016 have become touchstones for this visual vocabulary.
Where the artist stands now
Njideka Akunyili Crosby’s works are on view in 2026 collection exhibitions at MoMA New York, ICA Boston, the Norton Museum of Art and the Nasher Museum, demonstrating sustained institutional engagement across the US within the current exhibition cycle.
Key facts on Njideka Akunyili Crosby
- Artist: Njideka Akunyili Crosby
- Medium / Genre: Painting and mixed-media collage (figurative)
- Born: 1983, Enugu, Nigeria
- Place(s) of practice: Studio practice between Los Angeles and institutional projects in the United States and Europe
- Active since: Early 2010s, with residency at Studio Museum in Harlem in 2011
- Key work groups: The Beautyful Ones, I Refuse to be Invisible, Portals, Predecessors
- Current/last exhibition: Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination, Museum of Modern Art, New York, December 14, 2025 - July 25, 2026
- Major collections: Tate Modern (London), The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), Museum of Modern Art (New York), Studio Museum in Harlem (New York), Zeitz MOCAA (Cape Town)
- Awards: MacArthur Foundation Fellowship (2017), Smithsonian African Art Award (2019), United States Artists Fellowship (2021), Prix Canson (2016)
- Next date: Current exhibition cycle across MoMA New York, ICA Boston, Norton Museum of Art and Nasher Museum through late 2026
Frequently asked questions about Njideka Akunyili Crosby
Where is Njideka Akunyili Crosby currently on view in 2026?
Her CV and MutualArt list works in Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination at MoMA New York, To My Best Friend at ICA Boston, and Recognition of Art by Women: In Retrospect at the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach.
Which major commission is Njideka Akunyili Crosby working on?
The CV notes a commission titled The Obamas: Springing Forth for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, initiated by the Obama Foundation, extending her collage-based portraiture into a high-profile institutional context.
Which public collections hold key works by Njideka Akunyili Crosby?
Her institutional collections list includes Tate Modern, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMA New York, the Studio Museum in Harlem, Zeitz MOCAA and numerous North American museums, underscoring broad acquisition across leading institutions.
This article was produced with a.i. support and editorially reviewed. All statements without guarantee; auction results, exhibition dates and awards may change at short notice.
