Adeshola Makinde (b. 1990) is a Nigerian-American multidisciplinary artist based in Chicago, Illinois. He was raised in the Chicagoland suburbs and in his younger years attended predominantly white schools. This is something that shapes his work today, due to the fact that it was such a stark difference from the life he led at home with his immigrant parents from Nigeria. By going to schools with this sort of racial makeup, he didn’t learn a great deal of Black history, if at all. This is why the mission statement of his art practice is to educate by sharing the information that he learns on his personal journey of Black consciousness.

Makinde’s drawn to highlighting Black life in his work because he feels as though it’s something that is often neglected. The social justice themes found throughout his work is his way of advocating for those without a voice. Throughout his practice, Makinde often features source material from publications such as EBONY, JET, and other Black ephemera. Makinde utilizes these images of black life in his work to highlight social justice themes and challenge viewers to question the systems they find themselves in.