Today we’d like to introduce you to Ephraim Urevbu.
Hi Ephraim, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
Meeting the realities of life as one of eight children to a single mom in my native Nigeria, I dedicated myself, early on, to education as the key to success. I attended one of only three elite high schools, in my hometown of Warri, and Africa’s oldest art college, in Lagos, Nigeria.
Refusing the proscribed expectation of an acceptable professional pathway, I put an ocean between myself and my family to follow my truth – a passion for art in America and the city of Memphis. I studied at Memphis College of Art but received a Master of Arts degree from the University of Memphis. After graduation, In 1994 in my search for a space to create a 60’x18’ commissioned artwork, the largest work I had ever created, led to a dilapidated building on South Main Street in downtown Memphis. It was love at first sight. I bought and refurbished the building and founded Art Village Gallery and a restaurant called Zanzibar. Years later, working with the city of Memphis, led to the establishment of a vibrant arts district for Bluff City in the shadow of the National Civil Rights Museum.
Art served as a bridge from my past to his present – the poverty and seemingly impossible cultural and familial barriers to a career in art, the hardened realities of black life in America, the challenges of racism, and the private battle against cancer – gifting me with a unique and compassionate voice as displayed by my newest collection of works: “The naked truth.”
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It was not a smooth ride. Some of the initial struggles were cultural, social, and racial issues.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am an artist who is purposeful in using the arts to ignite an expanded national conversation, and an intention to at last address and inspire healing in America’s painful history and long challenge of racism. And to express my outrage and quiet my soul,
I am a modern expressionist artist and my medium is acrylic/mixed media on canvases and boards. I am known not just for my art but also for my entrepreneurial spirit. I own an art gallery (Urevbu contemporary) on south main and a restaurant that I later sold. I bought and renovated a fifteen-square-foot building on south main where I currently live. That endeavor was later featured in the TV program ” HGTV” in 2007. I also was instrumental in creating the south main art district in downtown Memphis for which I was awarded the first individual Vision award by the city of Memphis. That accomplishment is my most proud moment because it was done with very little resources and support. I am currently developing an Arts incubator project on a seven thousand sq foot building in Uptown Memphis.
What sets me apart from most is that I am a visionary, who will never shy away from challenges.
How can people work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
Getting the story out either through articles on print TV or on social media is a definite way to show support. Of course, I will not turn down financial support either. I will also welcome the support and collaboration of all creatives.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.ephraimurevbu.com
- Instagram: @ephraimurevbu
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ephraimmurevbu
- Twitter: @ephraimurevbu
