The graphic style itself is influenced by a lot of very layered and detailed comics that I read as a kid, like Vagabond by Takehiko Inoue.

- Toyin Odutola

Kerry James Marshall especially was a huge influence on me in graduate school, as were Wangechi Mutu and Julie Mehretu. These artists are titans. My …

- Toyin Odutola

I kept wanting to push my image as validity; I wanted to see my portrait on a wall and know it was okay.

- Toyin Odutola

Hank Willis Thomas is great. He's the one who "discovered" my work and saw something that I didn't see. He's still constantly pushing me to try out n…

- Toyin Odutola

I moved around a lot when I was a child; two of the houses I grew up in have totally disappeared. One was burnt in a riot, and the other was pulled d…

- Toyin Odutola

For a while, I was nervous about portraying women because of the objectification that automatically comes with it, whether the artist intends or not.

- Toyin Odutola

For a while, I was nervous about portraying women because of the objectification that automatically comes with it, whether the artist intends or not.…

- Toyin Odutola

I've always felt the portrait is an occasion for marks to happen. I've never viewed the portrait as about the sitter. Even when I go to the National …

- Toyin Odutola

Where some may see flat, static narratives, I see a spectrum of tonal gradations and realities. What I am creating is literally black portraiture wit…

- Toyin Odutola