Executed in 2019, Lunch Break presents the viewer with an engaging canvas of magenta and deep-indigo colour planes, horizontally sliced by a line of sky-blue. Sophistically composed of minimalist geometric shapes, a figure dressed in bright yellow attire stands below the red silhouette of a ceiling light. Partially covered by candy-floss, a decorative mask disguises the subject's identity entirely. Despite a lack of visible facial features, distinct yellow rings frame and direct the figure's gaze to confront the viewer, drawing them into Dennis Osadebe's colourful world.

The mask is a repetitive narrative used in the artist's work that represents a link to Nigerian historical and cultural references. In juxtaposing these links by bringing the symbol of the mask into a contemporary urban setting, Lunch Break works to deconstruct the perception of 'African Art'. Under the realm of 'Neo-Africa', a cultural movement founded by Osadebe, the present lot encourages people to rebrand tradition in a way that reflects the transforming world.

The intriguing plays of colour in Osadebe's Lunch Break stem from the Nigerian artist's unique blend of working methods, whereby he blurs the line between digital and painting techniques. In layering paint over sections of his digitally composed scenes, Osadebe consequently renders each work a unique, as he removes the ability to reproduce it digitally.

The present lot exists as part of Osadebe's series, Work. Life. Balance., which was presented as part of his first solo show in South Korea at the Jumee Kim Gallery (2019). Just this year, the artist has additionally presented solo shows at Galerie Liusa Wang in Paris (2019) and at Avenue des Arts in Los Angeles (2019).