What Shaped Us Does Not Disappear
Affinity Gallery is pleased to present “What Shaped Us Does Not Disappear”, a solo exhibition by London-based German-Nigerian artist Joke Amusan, which kicked off March 8 and will be running till April 2026.
This exhibition explores how migration, memory, and ancestral knowledge shape our sense of self and belonging. Through suspended sculptural and textile works, Amusan invites viewers to reflect on what we carry with us (names, stories, proverbs, and histories), and how these intangible inheritances travel across distance and time.
The works inhabit space like bodies in a gentle conversation, revealing the bonds that hold us. Hanging from branches and reaching into space, they bridge the human and natural worlds.
Organic forms emerge through cocoons, twisting vines, and spiralling structures that allude to cyclical journeys, movements inward toward origin and outward across generations.
About the Artist
Joke in the studio with her work.
Joke Amusan is a German-Nigerian artist based in London, England. Her art practice illuminates the rich and multifaceted experiences of Black womanhood through her exploration of identity, heritage, and migration. She creates immersive installations that engage multiple senses, and her art serves as a conversational bridge: inspiring women to come together, share their stories, and unapologetically embrace their authentic selves.
Joke’s work has been featured in group exhibitions such as “Re.Stance Collective”, New York, 2026; “Glitch the Gaze: The Feminist Recode”, D*MN Collective, London, 2026; “Extinguish”, Southside Contemporary Art Gallery, Virginia USA, 2025; “From Africa to Detroit: An Exploration of the Diaspora”, Norwest Gallery of Art, Detroit, USA, 2025; and “Unraveled”, Art Museum of the University of Memphis, Memphis, USA, 2025.
She has also presented solo exhibitions and fairs such as “Where Two Or Three Are Gathered”, TAFETA, London, 2025; “Curating The Culture”, MAIA, Birmingham, UK, 2025; and “Dallas Art Fair” with TAFETA, Dallas, USA, 2025.
In recognition of her practice, she received the Thameslink Art Award in 2025, was a finalist in The Ingram Prize in 2023, and was nominated for the “Female Founder” award in The Independent Awards in 2022.
