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| Sambisa Blues |
Wewe’s style stands him out. You can easily identify
his piece at a first glance. The renowned artist who sees himself more as a
witness than an author said “communicating with the spirits of the ancestors,
and drawing out the invisible spirits, the anjonnu, emere and the
ebora, who make the artworks. I am the vehicle, and they are the drivers.
We go on these strange journeys to the most remote ends of imaginative
experience.”
His works are widely acclaimed and accepted both in
Europe and America for their originality, simplicity, surface texture and
mastery of colours. His work is a mixture of African and Western sensibilities
and images, reflecting his own training and experience as an international
artist. His work, bold of classification, silently grows on viewers, blending
with their moods, simultaneously taking their minds to strange and familiar
colourful places full of false nostalgia.
Due to his unique style, the Galerie Duvivier,
Paris, France, will present his works to
the Paris audience and art collectors
for twelve days. The exhibition entitled Tola Wewe, will open for
public viewing on Tuesday, November 24, and runs until Saturday, December 5,
2015. Wewe revealed that the exhibition will feature twenty three pieces of his
recent paintings and terracotta works.
In his paintings, Wewe draws the audience into a
personal exploration of his playful and dynamic energy. Executed in a style
rich with abstract expressionism and action painting, his works are
characterised by spontaneous and confident brush strokes. And inspired by his
heritage, the riot of colours, personal symbols and African textile prints all
serve to infuse his canvases with vibrancy. His work explores both themes from
the perspective of the observer, inviting the audience to position themselves
in the stunning scenery.
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| Warm Greetings from the Yellow Sun |
The organisers of his upcoming international
exhibition said they are pleased to present Tola Wewe in Paris. “We
are showing Wewe for his diversities of styles,” said the exhibition curator,
Ms Bose Fagbemi who has curated other international shows. She continued: “As
distinct from being an African artist from Nigeria, which is left for the
viewers to analyse.”
The gallery which was founded in 1945 is located in
the heart of Neuilly-sur-Seine, Paris, France.
Wewe is from Ondo State and was born in 1959. He
trained and graduated with a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Ife,
Osun State in 1983. He then went on to obtain a Masters degree in African
Visual Arts from the University of Ibadan, Oyo State in 1986. He worked as a
cartoonist before becoming a full time studio artist in 1991.
He is also a founding member of Ona movement,
which emerged in February 1989. The movement is a group of scholars, critics
and practicing artists committed to pursuing artistic excellence through the
adaptation and interpretation of traditional materials and methods, forms and
styles of contemporary Yoruba art and design. He has participated in
various group shows locally and internationally, as well as many solo
exhibitions.
