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Chris Ofili Art

British, b. 1968

Chris Ofili’s earliest paintings and prints were some of his most radical, breaking boundaries and setting the tone for a lifetime of work that unapologetically explores Black identity, racism, religion and pop culture. 

The Manchester-born artist made a big splash in the art world in the early 1990s, after he visited Zimbabwe at the age of 23. Deeply moved by the region’s Stone Age cave paintings, which incorporated endless (presumably) finger-painted dots, Ofili returned to his studio and infused his paintings with the exuberance of his travels — and with some of the little balls of elephant dung he saw on his trip, which he also found intriguing and brought back to England.

Ofili was a member of the Young British Artists — a collective of London-based artists that included Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and others that never shied from using non-traditional materials or tackling controversial subject matter. He found the spotlight in the late 1990s when then-New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani publicly criticized the artist’s monumental depiction of an eroticized black Madonna that featured elephant dung and images of female genitalia.

So it was that Ofili became, for a time, best known for his elephant dung paintings. Then, in 1998, at the age of 30, Ofili won the coveted Turner Prize — he was the first Black artist to do so — and soon afterward, in 2003, he was selected to exhibit at the 50th Venice Biennale.

Over the years, Ofili has incorporated other surprising elements into his work, including resin, glitter, beads, oil paint, and pornographic cut-outs — a rich amalgamation of textures and colors, iconography and symbols. He has also found himself surrounded by controversy, as in 1996, when he painted a Black Madonna with elephant dung on her breast, set against a background of genitalia cut out of pornographic magazines. In 2017, Ofili was awarded a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) in honor of his unusual and thought-provoking contributions to art.

Ofili’s work is held in the collections of some of the world’s most prominent public institutions, including the British Museum in London and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Ofili enjoys ongoing exhibitions at prestigious museums like the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the Tate in London, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Today, Ofili lives and works in Trinidad.

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Artist: Chris Ofili
Rincon Falls - Red Light
By Chris Ofili
Located in Santa Fe, NM
A radiant color spit bite aquatint with drypoint from Turner-prize winning Chris Ofili. Rincon Falls-Red Light, 2008 Color spit bite and sugar lift aquatin...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Chris Ofili Art

Materials

Etching

Crowning of a Satyr
By Chris Ofili
Located in London, GB
Edition of 125 40 colour screenprint with hand applied 24-carat gold leaf on Somerset Tub Sized Satin White 410gsm. 76 x 60 cm (29.9 x 23.6 in) Signed and dated by the artist Chris...
Category

2010s Contemporary Chris Ofili Art

Materials

Gold Leaf

Chris Ofili, R.I.P. Stephen Lawrence 1974-1993: Contemporary Art, Signed Print
By Chris Ofili
Located in Hamburg, DE
Chris Ofili (born 1968 in Manchester) R.I.P. Stephen Lawrence 1974 – 1993, 2013 Medium: Lithograph and photoluminescent silkscreen on paper Size: 45 x 35.6 cm (17.7 x 14 in) Edition ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Chris Ofili Art

Materials

Lithograph

Chris Ofili, Afternoon with La Soufrière: Signed Print, British Contemporary Art
By Chris Ofili
Located in Hamburg, DE
Chris Ofili (British, b. 1968) Afternoon with La Soufrière (prelude 4), 2021 Medium: Digital pigment print and gold leaf on Somerset Velvet Dimensions: 26.1 x 38.6 cm Edition of 100 ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Chris Ofili Art

Materials

Digital Pigment

Chris Ofili, Poolside: Etching on wove paper, Contemporary Art, Signed Print
By Chris Ofili
Located in Hamburg, DE
Chris Ofili (born 1968 in Manchester) Poolside, 2013 Medium: Etching on wove paper Dimensions: 45.1 x 35.6 cm (17.75 x 14 in) Edition of 55: Hand-signed and numbered Condition: Mint
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Chris Ofili Art

Materials

Etching

Chris Ofili, Untitled - 2000, Signed Aquatint and Drypoint Etching, British Art
By Chris Ofili
Located in Hamburg, DE
Chris Ofili (British, b. 1968) Untitled, 2000 Medium: Etching, aquatint and drypoint, on Hahnemühle wove paper Dimensions: 25.7 × 20.8 cm (10 1/10 × 8 1/5 in) Edition of 100: Hand-si...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Chris Ofili Art

Materials

Drypoint, Etching, Aquatint

R.I.P. Stephen Lawrence 1974 - 1993
By Chris Ofili
Located in New York, NY
Chris Ofili R.I.P. Stephen Lawrence 1974 - 1993, 2013 Lithographic print in 4 colours with silkscreened glow-in-the-dark text 17 7/10 × 14 inches Edition of 100 Accompanied by a numb...
Category

2010s Abstract Chris Ofili Art

Materials

Lithograph, Screen

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Previously Available Items
Afro Lunar Lovers II, 21st century gold leave and embossed screenprint
By Chris Ofili
Located in Beachwood, OH
Chris Ofili (British, b. 1968) Afro Lunar Lovers II, 2005 Giclée print in colours with screenprint, embossing and gold leaf, on wove paper Signed and dated lower right, titled lower center, numbered 181/250 lower left 18.75 x 12.25 inches 25 x 18 inches, framed Christopher Ofili, (born 10 October 1968) is a British painter who is best known for his paintings incorporating elephant dung. He was Turner Prize-winner and one of the Young British Artists. Since 2005, Ofili has been living and working in Trinidad and Tobago...
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Early 2000s Contemporary Chris Ofili Art

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Gold Leaf

Afternoon with la Soufrière (Prelude 4)
By Chris Ofili
Located in London, GB
Digital Pigment Print on 330 gsm Somerset Velvet Enhanced with Gold Leaf. Hand-signed and numbered by the artist. Paper size: 26.1 x 38.6 cm
 
Edition of 100 + 20 APs
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Last Night. New Day
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Located in Santa Fe, NM
Last Night. New Day by Chris Ofili is a color spit bite and sugar lift aquatint with hard ground etching and drypoint. The print measures 54 x 28 inches (137.2 x 71.1 cm) and is from...
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Damascus Nude, Linocut in Artist Frame, Contemporary Art, Young British Artist
By Chris Ofili
Located in Hamburg, DE
Chris Ofili (British, b. 1968) Damascus Nude, 2006 Medium: Linocut on wove copperplate paper, in artist's frame (covered in goat skin) Sheet dimensions: 30.2 × 20.1 cm (12 × 8 in) Fr...
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Regal, Contemporary Art, Young British Artist, YBA, 21st Century
By Chris Ofili
Located in Hamburg, DE
Chris Ofili (Manchester 1968 – lives in London) Regal, 2000 Medium: Lithographic print in 4 colours on a silkscreened glow-in-the-dark background, on Colorplan 270 gsm paper Dimensio...
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Afro Lunar Lovers
By Chris Ofili
Located in Hamburg, DE
Chris Ofili (Manchester 1968 – lives in London) 'Afro Lunar Lovers' Giclee, embossed on paper, gold leaf hand applied by the artist Edition of 350 Signed, dated, titled and numbered in gold ink on recto Published by Afroco and Victoria Miro...
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Untitled, Red Dots, 1997
By Chris Ofili
Located in London, GB
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Untitled (Royal Portrait)
By Chris Ofili
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Chris Ofili's Royal Portraits are the most iconic and popular works from his fascinating oeuvre. They highlight an important element in his work; the celebration of Afrocentric li...
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Chris Ofili art for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a wide variety of authentic Chris Ofili art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Chris Ofili in etching, lithograph, aquatint and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 21st century and contemporary and is mostly associated with the contemporary style. Not every interior allows for large Chris Ofili art, so small editions measuring 9 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Yinka Shonibare, Maria Rivans, and Brian Calvin. Chris Ofili art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $2,800 and tops out at $8,433, while the average work can sell for $4,695.

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