Artist Statement for Fine Art Photographer Obiora Embry

Obiora Embry is a creative, enterprising, intelligent, multi‐talented, and spiritual Black man who was born to smart, visionary, and ingenious Afrocentric parents. During Obiora’s childhood he began to develop creatively. He wrote poetry, mystery & science fiction short stories, a play; sketched; drew; colored; painted (in his childhood home); acted (in class plays); and started photographing Mother Nature, family road trips, and more. Obiora also developed analytically too. He learned about notable brothers & sisters from Lexington and around the nation, also about his family and the giants on whose shoulders he proudly stands. Obiora also attended multi‐cultural events & talks by scholars, activists, and others at the University of Kentucky’s MLK Cultural Center. Also his brothers, his sister, their father, and himself built a 386 or 486 computer. Even though they were told they were not capable of building it & having it work, they defied the odds.

Throughout Obiora’s life, he has defied the odds. He chose to take the road less traveled as an adult and began blazing trails. As a trailblazer, Obiora experienced setbacks but because of the perseverance and dedication instilled in him growing up, he was able to weather the storms and continues to ride the waves. Obiora lost his creativity for a spell, however, since 2014, he has been actively trying to become the full embodiment of himself.

Obiora holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial or Systems Engineering. As an adult, he has used his lifelong wisdom and experiences, knowledge gained from studying engineering, and his heart & mind to help create awareness, expand horizons, and highlight Mother Nature through his creative endeavors. Obiora is not classically trained. Instead he observes Mother Nature, studies the work of others, reads books, reverse engineers, and/or allows the Universe & his heart to be a guide for the words that he speaks, writes, the still images he captures with his camera, the sketches & drawings that he puts on paper, and the dishes he creates (inspired in part by his mother’s creative dishes). Needless to say this and other things not mentioned is what makes Obiora unique or O‐riginal.