Known for his hyper-realistic pencil artworks, Kelvin Okafor is using his latest exhibition to call attention to visible skin differences.
“Drawing Awareness,” at London’s Hope93 Gallery, features portraits of both ordinary people and celebrities, including Canadian fashion model Winnie Harlow, who has the skin condition vitiligo, Grammy-winning pop star Seal, who has facial scarring from a form of the autoimmune disease lupus, and acid attack survivor Katie Piper.
“It’s a very emotional process, because all of the models have skin conditions, whether genetic or environmental, that have left scars not just on the surface but within,” said Okafor.
Okafor first found fame on social media more than a decade ago with his pencil portraits of notable figures, including Amy Winehouse and Mother Teresa, drawn from their photographs, and he’s since had multiple group and solo exhibitions. For “Drawing Awareness,” he again worked from photographs of his subjects but spoke to many of them beforehand to get to know them.
“The process before putting pen to paper is one of patience, stillness and compassion,” Okafor explained.
“Listening to my subjects’ stories often stirred very deep emotions in me and made me reflect on my own life. Not in a negative way, but it changed how I see the world and helped me realize that it’s truly a blessing to be comfortable in the skin we’re in.”
Each drawing is paired with the sitter’s personal story, which, like their portrait, challenges the viewer to see beyond the surface.
Okafor says he spent up to 900 hours on a single drawing, and was absorbed in his subjects’ stories as he studied their voice, body language and psychology.
This emotional connection, he said, is essential: “It enables me to work long hours, because I’m honoring their condition. If I didn’t feel that emotional connection, I don’t think I would serve as much time.”
Okafor often draws for 14 hours a day, waking up at 5:30am for meditation and exercise, then beginning to draw around 11am.
He works in focused stretches, taking breaks to recharge, and gets about four hours of sleep each night. “It sounds intense,” he admitted, “but I get lost in it because it feels like it’s preparing me for something bigger.”
Born and raised in London, with Nigerian parents, Okafor’s interest in skin differences has roots in his childhood.
“When I was young, visiting Nigeria with my family, I often saw people with albinism but didn’t understand what it was,” he recalls. “Out of curiosity, I would ask myself, ‘Don’t they get suntanned? Why are they so light?’”
Returning to London, he noticed how rare it was to see people with albinism there.
“When I finally had the chance to draw someone with albinism for this project, it felt like I could answer the question I’d been asking myself as a child,” he said.
Challenging beauty standards
Okafor first drew Harlow in 2019, and it was a revelation for him. “It made me realize that, although we live in a world with very strict beauty ideals, here was someone in the modeling industry who has a very visible difference and has carved out space for so many others with skin conditions and unique features,” he said.
This experience made him question what beauty is. “People often say it’s about symmetry, height, weight, but is it really?” he said. “Beauty is something much deeper than the surface … almost intangible. It is something that radiates within a person.”
Feeling seen and included
Hope93 Gallery was created as a space with inclusion “at its heart,” looking to “connect communities using art as a starting point,” according to its website.
“What drew me to ‘Drawing Awareness’ is the importance of seeing inner beauty,” said Hope93 founder Aki Abiola, whose gallery is named in honor of his late father, MKO Abiola, who ran for president in Nigeria’s 1993 elections.
“We live in an age where looks often shape how people judge others, which I believe is unfair. When you learn the stories behind people’s lives, you begin to understand them better. I think that’s exactly what Kelvin is trying to reveal: the beauty within.”
Okafor says he wants to further raise awareness by working with charities such as Face Equality International, Changing Faces, or the Katie Piper Foundation, which have all partnered to present Drawing Awareness.
“I would love for people who have similar conditions to feel seen and included,” said Okafor.
“People who don’t, I want them to see this as an opportunity to learn more, to be enlightened.”
The exhibition runs until July 3 2025.
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