Since I began studying photography over ten years ago, my work has focused on capturing the essence of people through the medium of black and white photography— in both natural, spontaneous settings, and in more artistically created and controlled situations. I meet my subjects everywhere I go--on the street, in the grocery store, at restaurants, etc. Other people often do not recognize what I see in a subject until they see the finished photograph. I am not always looking for the most beautiful subject, but the most interesting. While I photograph subjects in a variey of situations and locations, I am most interested in photographing the nude figure. Until recently, my work focused primarily on capturing erotic images of the nude figure--both women and men.

However, since moving to Minneapolis from Baltimore several years ago, my level of consciousness of the racial, ethnic, and gender injustices that persist in our society has been greatly raised. This awareness has helped move my art in a new direction. In the words of photographer and artist Gordon Parks, my camera has become my “choice of weapon.” Through the art of my photography, I am working to create dialogue and promote social change.

 

ON LINE EXHIBITS
The Box : Reparation Series - 2004 McKnight Fellowship winning exhibit - 12 Black and White images.
By posing subjects with a large cube of tinted Plexiglass, giving us both direct and reflected figure studies, Tobechukwu creates a complex blend of cultural and optical symbolism.

PHOTOGRAPHY EXPERIENCE (Partial listing):
January 2001 - present - STUDIOtobechi; St. Paul, Minnesota
March 2000 - present - Freelance photographer for Insight News in Minneapolis, Minnesota
April 1997 - September 1999 - Tobechi’s Photography Studio & Gallery; Baltimore, MD
1993 to 1995 Tobechi’s Photography Studio in West Baltimore, Maryland

AWARDS/GRANTS
2004 2004 McKnight Photography Fellowship
2003 Minnesota Center for Photography: Civil Rights in Minnesota Award

EXHIBITIONS/SHOWINGS 2000-2004(Partial listing)
October 2004- GalleryPrint - Saint Paul, Minnesota - Reparation: "The Box Series"
August/Sept. 2004 - La Bodega, Minneapolis, Minnesota
February 2004 Black History Month Exhibit - Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota
January/March 2004 La Bodega, Minneapolis, Minnesota
December 2003 The Black Dog Café, St. Paul, Minnesota
August 2003 Civil Rights: The Struggle in Minnesota (Special Commission Awarded) - Minnesota Center for Photography
April and October 2003 & Lowertown Art Crawl
March 2003 Rain Children - Bemidji State University, Bemidji, Minnesota
May 2001 The Minneapolis Foundation - Minneapolis, Minnesota
April 2000 Black Photographer’s Collaborative of Minnesota Frogtown Alliance - St. Paul, Minnesota