How Dallas Artist Temi Coker Created His First Home Collection for Walmart

Ad campaigns for buzzy global clients, sold-out art editions, a pop-powered fashion line, and a new home collection for a big-box retailer — it’s a good time to be Temi Coker. Catherine D. Anspon catches up with the Nigerian-born, Oak Cliff-based talent, who’s known nationally but off the radar in his adopted hometown.

How many artists can boast of a Walmart collab and call the Oscars a client. Who among University of Houston grads lands an Adobe Creative Residency. And who needs Artnews clips when you’ve got clients such as AT&T, Facebook, HarperCollins, Peloton, Twitter, and Apple. This is Temi Coker’s CV.

Apple tapped Coker for a Creative Projects Episode touting the brand’s graphic package for iPads, Procreate Brush, one version inspired by Coker’s own unmistakable highly keyed style and Matisse-like color palette. For the uninitiated, the artist’s aesthetic presents a captivating digitally collaged mashup somewhere between photography and painting, conjuring bold, graphically dazzling portraits of Black protagonists who appear to be backlit by neon strobe lights. 

Coker embodies the best of the American dream: when the road is open, the talent there, and the path — and vision — clear. Emigrating to Canada then the U.S. from Lagos, he and his family settled in Dallas when he was 11. The year was 2004: His first creative outlet was playing keyboard in his minister father’s church. College at the University of Houston followed, Class of 2014, where Coker bucked his parents’ wishes by forsaking a planned biomedical engineering degree to dive into digital media. Returning to Dallas post-graduation, he landed a gig at his former high school, teaching photography and design. His life with a day job ended in 2018 when he was awarded a coveted Adobe Creative Residency to pursue graphic design/photography.

Since, Coker has become a poster talent for the success of the Adobe program. The creative year-long residency, which has relationships currently with MoMA and the V&A in London, launches many careers and in Coker’s year was limited to just seven residents worldwide, with only four from the U.S.

After Coker’s residency wrapped, Adobe became a client. Other creative projects flowed his way, lured by a signature style honed during his Adobe sojourn. Beyond his graphics chops, clients were attracted to Coker’s commitment to social justice and mission to uplift the Black community. Campaigns for Adobe (“Honor Heroes” and “Diverse Voices”) and AT&T (“Dream in Black”) followed, as well as unique projects including Black Girls Code ads; artwork for the Issa Rae HBO series Insecure; and, in the literary world, the dramatic book cover for The New York Times bestseller Punching the Air, a young adult novel about a wrongfully incarcerated teenage boy who seeks solace in words and art.

In 2021, Coker was commissioned to reimagine the Oscar statuette for a series of televised ads. As the pinnacle of the “Bring Your Movie Love” campaign, he was one of seven international artists sought out by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to add energy to that year’s cinematic awards season. 

Coker’s personal life has been ascendant, too. He married his soulmate, fellow creative/photographer Afritina Coker, in 2018, and two children followed. In 2018, the couple also founded Coker Studio, the brand name for his designs and online shop. His Oak Cliff photography studio, in the historic Tyler Station building, serves as a site of frequent community-focused pop-ups highlighting Coker’s burgeoning fashion brand (his color-blocked jackets, $200 to $350, frequently sell out). Timed to Mother’s Day 2026, the Mama varsity jacket emblazoned with cool-kids slang Muva is emblematic of the collection. With Temi-styled graphics, the buoyant streetwear, often sporting positive messaging, possesses an ‘80s feel-good vibe.

It was providential when Coker Studio, at Afritina’s urging, created its first home goods collections: pillowcases with the Temi treatment. Soon Walmart came calling, and the Temi Coker x Walmart collab was born. The 16-piece collection includes pillows, throws, rugs, and vases, priced from $13 to $320, and is available for a limited time this spring through the retailer’s website.

The Walmart site sports an image of the charismatic artist surrounded by his creations — art and life come full circle. Most compelling is the video explaining his merch. Cradling a vase, he begins, “I really wanted people to feel the texture. I hear texture is our crown.” Reflecting on his homeland, he says, “This collection is focused on legacy and Black culture … Growing up in Lagos, I just loved how loud Nigeria was. In loudness there is a lot of joy. In the African house, the living room is the heart of the house.

“When I think about heirlooms, I want to be able to leave something behind that shows my story from beginning to end,” Coker says.

Shop Temi Coker x Walmart here. Learn more about Temi Coker here.