Wenenoke (adapt)
Eto Otitigbe
Ceramic, wood, stainless steel
1 ft. × 2 ft. × 12 ft.
Belle’s Brook in the Plant Family Collection
“I’ve been moving a lot,” says artist Eto Otitigbe. “Adapting to new spaces isn’t always easy for me.” Otitigbe has been particularly interested in birds who adapt objects into nests. His clay birdhouses, clustered together to suggest a community, are modeled after bird bottles, or “martin pots,” that were mounted under building eaves in colonial times to encourage martins and other small birds to nest and help control insect populations. Inspired by his oldest son, who loves birdwatching, Otitigbe says, “Thinking about birds helps me keep my mind in the clouds—a transitory space where my ideas flow and I can dream big.”
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Eto Otitigbe (b. 1977, U.S.) is interested in recovering buried narratives and giving form to the unseen. He is a polymedia artist whose interdisciplinary practice includes sculpture, performance, installation, and public art. Otitigbe’s work has been exhibited at the Bronx Museum, Wave Hill, the Guggenheim, Socrates Sculpture Park, the Oakland Cemetery, and Longwood Gallery. He is an assistant professor of sculpture in the art department at Brooklyn College. He received an MFA in creative practice from the University of Plymouth.
Artist website: etootitigbe.com
Instagram: @etootitigbe
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