OTABENGA

Black and white pixelated portrait of a smiling person with exaggerated facial features, showing small eyes, a wide nose, and large mouth with crooked teeth.
Black and white pixelated portrait of a smiling person with exaggerated facial features, showing small eyes, a wide nose, and large mouth with crooked teeth.

an educational and cultural initiative to reclaim the untold and forgotten story of mbye Ota Benga, the congolese man exhibited at the new york bronx zoo.

The story of Ota Benga has been told before, yet it remains untold from an artistic perspective. This is an ongoing project paying homage to an ancestor. It's a concept of loss, the trauma, and healing all in one place. started as a research, but it has become history on its own and evolving into an african legacy. read more on the project below.

OTABENGA: The Project
The Illustrated Poetry Book
Documentary film by Dr. Niyi Coker Jr
Soundtrack