Oboe Ngua – All the Bins in the World

All the Bins in the World is an ambitious project by Oboe Ngua to photograph all the bins in the world. “I am starting with all the bins in London,” she says, “as I live there, but I hope to quickly move on to Europe, Africa and the world.”

Having received a substantial grant from the But is it Art?! Foundation of Fort Worth she is now able to devote the next seven years to the project. “On average I am able to photograph two hundred bins a day. If I work seven days a week, 7am to 9pm, without any breaks then I should finish photographing London’s bins by December 2026, when I shall have a large exhibition at Pimlico Wilde.”

Before then we hope to show the collection as it builds. 

Oboe explains her motivation

“I grew up in Lagos where we didn’t have a bin in the house. Even when I was young I told myself that one day I would make up for that privation. Little did I know that I would do so in such a wonderful way. I hope to build the largest privately held collection of bin and bin related photographs in the world.”

Collectors are advised to make their interest known as this project is expected to sell out before it even goes on sale.

“I am amazed that my early bin works are already selling for thousands of pounds. But then I remember, it is such an under-examined subject. To me these bins have become friends and models; each one like a life drawing embodying everything that a bin can strive to be.

Leave a Comment