Chukwuka Nwobi’s Portraits Celebrate The Diverse Beauty Of Nigerian Women

Baby oil, flowers, a naked black woman and an unoriginal photographer: this is the recipe for every single #MelaninPoppin photo shoot on social media. If you think we are exaggerating, just take a trip to Instagram.

It’s really frustrating that a lot of the artists and photographers working today have absolutely no idea how to celebrate the beauty of black women without oversexualizing them. Thankfully, that’s not the case with 19-year-old photojournalist, Chukwuka Nwobi.

Chukwuka’s ongoing portrait series is focused on capturing and celebrating the diverse beauty of Nigerian women in the most vibrant way possible.

 

Speaking with us about what inspired the series, Chukwuka said:

“Looking at the diverse beauty of the Nigerian woman goes deeper than just surface beauty. It’s in how ‘street smart’ she is and the hustle of her feet against the concrete road.

Driving through Lagos, I look at the women and I find beauty in the ways they express themselves – in everything from the way they speak to the way they dress.

The beauty of the Nigerian woman is subtle and diverse at the same time. That’s what I really wanted to capture in this series.” 

About how he discovered his love for photography in the first place, Chukwuka continued:

“I’ve always loved photography. It all started when I dived into being a photojournalist. I used to be a writer, so I’d get photographer friends to take the pictures and I’d write the content. But they never really got what I wanted.

So I finally decided to take the pictures myself. I borrowed a camera and I started shooting and since then I’ve been creating my photo journals myself from scratch. That has helped me grow into the visual creator I am today.” 

 

You can check out more of Chukwuka’s work on his Twitter and Instagram.