Ijeoma Loren Uche-Okeke (1972 – 2022)

Curator Ijeoma Uche-Okeke has passed away on September 1st, 2022, in Johannesburg.

Uche-Okeke was the Chief Executive Officer of the Asele Institute, a cultural institution founded by her late father, master artist and scholar, Uche Okeke, in Nimo, Anambra state, Nigeria in 1958. The Asele Institute houses an important repository and collection of contemporary African art. Ijeoma assumed her position at Asele in 2019 developing the organization’s board, exhibitions and programs. Her drive and determination in preserving her father’s legacy and championing African artists by further developing Asele into a global institution was groundbreaking. Ijeoma’s leadership propelled Asele into creating both a non-profit organization and a family-run business enterprise, the Professor Uche Okeke Legacy Limited. In 2019, she co-edited and initiated the re-launch of Uche Okeke’s seminal book, “Art in Development – A Nigerian Perspective” published by Iwalewa House at the University of Bayreuth, Germany. She also co-curated a major exhibition at Iwalewa House “We will now go to Kpaaza” featuring selected works of Uche Okeke, which opened in 2022.