For Nigerian illustrator and designer Tobi XP, a portrait can be more than a likeness. It can introduce a character, suggest a personality, or offer a glimpse into an imagined world. His illustrations combine expressive portraiture, carefully rendered lighting, distinctive clothing, and graphic elements inspired by contemporary visual culture. Beyond illustration, Tobi works across branding, product design, game concept art, and digital experiences. As the founder and design lead of TBXP Studio, he has developed a multidisciplinary practice that brings together his interests in art, design, and technology. His work moves between commercial projects and personal experiments, exploring how images can develop into characters, visual identities, and interactive experiences.
One of the most interesting aspects of Tobi's portfolio is his approach to character development. In Yinka Oakley, he introduces a character whose strength lies in her ability to understand people and situations, suggesting a larger fictional world through a brief description of her personality. Another character, Adéwúrà — The Crown of Gold, explores heritage, mystery, and quiet power, portraying someone who carries her past with pride while approaching her future with purpose. His illustration of Umi Amara takes a different approach, combining a red patterned head tie, a customised earring, an illustrated dove, and graffiti-style lettering to create a distinctive portrait. Across other works, including MaMi, Auntie Bose, Aboki Sani, and LAuV, Tobi continues to experiment with expression, styling, colour, and composition, using visual details to give each subject a recognisable identity.
Experimentation also plays an important role in how Tobi develops his skills. His 365ArtWithTobi series documents a commitment to regular drawing, featuring personal studies such as Silence, Gold Mind, and Velora. In Gold Mind, he revisited an illustration from 2020 and created a new version, offering a direct comparison of his artistic development over several years. Other projects, including Origin, Mask, Assertive, and Confident, explore different approaches to representing personality and identity through illustration. Tobi also shares sketches, painting process breakdowns, and experiments with animation, using tools such as Procreate and Moho to explore the possibilities of both still and moving images. His Absurd project demonstrates this interest in combining illustration with motion, while his process documentation offers a closer look at the decisions involved in creating his work.
Beyond his personal illustrations, Tobi applies his creative skills to branding, product design, interfaces, and game development. Through TBXP Studio, he works on visual identities and design projects, while his professional experience includes roles at Miva, where he has worked in illustration, design, and simulation development, and Nequinox Studio Ltd, where he has contributed as a game concept artist. These different disciplines allow him to approach creative problems from both artistic and functional perspectives, considering not only how something looks but also how people interact with it. On his portfolio website, Tobi describes his approach as “figuring it out as I go,” a statement that reflects his willingness to experiment and explore unfamiliar creative territory. Whether he is developing fictional characters, illustrating portraits, designing digital products, or building interactive experiences, his practice continues to evolve through curiosity, technical exploration, and a genuine interest in making things.
