Sharing Nigerian stories through ceramic sculpture

September 11, 2025 Jane Shellenbarger

Emmanuel Okechukwu ’25 MFA (ceramics) spent his time at RIT developing a signature style that distinguished his work from other potters.

A display of ceramic vessels in RIT's Bevier Gallery.

The results of his determined journey are ceramic sculptures and vessels distinctly marked with hand-drawn motifs from his native Nigeria. The work represents a unique convergence of Okechukwu’s African-inspired patterns with contemporary American art influence he gathered at RIT.

Line by line with his slip trailing tool, he makes his signature known with bold line work, intricate detail, and a symphony of underglaze colors. He is an authentic storyteller, using ceramics to share his Nigerian lineage.

His thesis body of work (pictured here) explored gender and sexuality symbolism. His ceramic sculptures are a response, Okechukwu said, to 20th-century British colonialism in Nigeria promoting rigid gender norms and discouraging non-binary identities. The large-scale pieces have features aligned with non-binary and gender neutrality — from the hand-drawn textile designs and hairstyle references and colors, all the way to what they’re named. Collectively, they blur the definitions of masculinity and femininity.

After graduating from RIT’s ceramics MFA program, Okechukwu accepted a position as an artist in residence at University of North Dakota.