Quobna Ottobah Cugoano was one of the most prominent opponents of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade in eighteenth-century London, yet very little is known about him. One of the only dates that can be confidently ascribed to his life is his baptism at St James's Church, Piccadilly in 1773. To mark the 250th anniversary of this baptism, St James's commissioned a series of four new paintings, created by Trinidadian artist Che Lovelace, to honour Cugoano's achievements and shed light on his legacy.
St James's Piccadilly
Born in Ghana, in the Fante village of Agimaque or Ajumako, Cugoano was captured from his hometown as a young teenager and trafficked to Grenada to work on a plantation as a slave. Bought by a merchant, he then travelled to England and gained his freedom in 1772. The next record of Cugoano is as a servant working in the Pall Mall home of artists Maria and Richard Cosway, and one of the only known images of him is from this period.
As a free man, Cugoano became one of the most prominent opponents of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade in eighteenth-century London. A member of the Sons of Africa alongside Olaudah Equiano, he also wrote Thoughts and Sentiments on the Evil and Wicked Traffic of the Slavery and Commerce of the Human Species in 1787. This was the first book written by an African with lived experience of enslavement, calling for the total abolition of the transatlantic chattel slave trade and the immediate emancipation of all enslaved people.
Title page of the first edition
'Thoughts and Sentiments on the Evil and Wicked Traffic of the Slavery and Commerce of the Human Species' (1787) by Ottobah Cugoano 
Cugoano's radical writing was a powerful challenge, refuting popular arguments of the time – especially biblical and religious views – in support of slavery and confidently demonstrating that any interpretation of the Bible that attempted to justify slavery was abhorrent not only to society in Britain and beyond, but also abhorrent to God. His critique exposed the Church itself as a perpetrator of the slave trade and he advanced the view that 'the difference of colour and complexion, which it hath pleased God to appoint among men, are no more unbecoming than the different shades of the rainbow are unseemly to the whole.'
Despite his significance as an abolitionist, Cugoano has been largely overlooked in Black British history. The record of his baptism on 20th August 1773 at St James's is all the more important as the only place and date that is clearly and verifiably part of his story – we do not know his exact birth or death date. The four new paintings commissioned to mark the 250th anniversary of his baptism look to recognise him more widely and celebrate his contribution to the abolition movement.
Created by Che Lovelace, each piece of art is infused with rich colours and bold shapes, straddling the boundary between magical realism, abstraction and theology while depicting the intersecting lives of the people and natural beauty of Trinidad, where he lives, and one of the Caribbean islands that was scarred by the trade in enslaved people trafficked from Africa.
Che Lovelace
Ekow Eshun, who acted as curatorial advisor to St James's for this commission, writes 'Quobna Ottobah Cugoano is a significant figure in the evolution of Britain as a society that speaks with many voices and from many perspectives. This new commission by Che Lovelace underscores the important role that art can play in addressing the complexity of our shared past with nuance, insight and creative ambition.'
Alongside the paintings, a plaque dedicated to Cugoano now hangs on a wall within the church.
Quobna Ottobah Cugoano Memorial Plaque
2023
Lida Lopes Cardozo Kindersley (b.1954) 
Dedicated on 20th August 2023, it was designed by The Cardozo Kindersley Workshop, carved out of a rough-hewn slate to allude to the 'jagged intervention into his life' that was his forced enslavement while the simple, stark lettering references the clear boldness of his own writing which embodies a challenge to church and society that is as powerful today as it was in 1787.
Commemoration of the Cugoano commemorative plaque in St James's Piccadilly
Today both the paintings and the plaque can be seen by all visitors as they enter St James's. They are the first permanent art commissions to commemorate and celebrate Cugoano's life anywhere in the world.
St James's Piccadilly, London
Watch The Reverend Dr Ayla Lepine and curator Alayo Akinkugbe discuss Che Lovelace's paintings and Cugoano's memorial in this short film
