“Story telling has
gotten better with photography,” says Adetayo Adegbola, whose works will be on display this Friday
at Mydrim Gallery, 74B, Norman Williams Street, Ikoyi, Lagos, Nigeria, in an exhibition
entitled: First Page, Three
Chapters.
The exhibition of paintings and
photography will feature about twenty paintings by Ozangeobuoma Orlu, Imomoh Asemokha and ten photographs by Adegbola. Opening reception will be on October 13 at
3pm. Exhibition runs till October 27, 2017.
Traversing the geographical terrains of Nigeria, Adegbola, a documentary/fine art photographer, aims at creating images of time and moments. Images of cultural value and significance as a medium to conserving the Nigerian heritage.
He has interacted, socialised
and keenly observed, compared and contrasted some of the existing cultures,
social and environmental interactions and so on of Nigeria.
His works for this
show, he says, will depict some socio-cultural themes, lifestyle and splendour
of Nigerians. “My artistic practice as a documentary photographer goes beyond
the studio; it is more experimental and didactic when moved into the natural
environment. I sometimes use available elements in the story-telling of the
subjects. In summary, my artistic life has been filled with adventure and skilful
experiments as well as inspiring people ugh my works of art.”
He hopes to capture other
cultures with his camera; study human nature in relation to his immediate
environment through visual story telling. “I have come to talk about life; I
have come to talk about the past; I present to you; First Page, Three Chapters.”
Orlu will
explore the visual and physical qualities of his medium, his works are disturbing with lots of dark colours and abstract subjects.
“I paint from black because of the injustice and
suffering the so-called power (money) has caused the poor masses. I try to
depict this in my paintings. You could see light fighting darkness which is our
current reality”, he stated
Orlu works are not elusive but paradoxical and carefully balanced between representation
and abstraction, with
thought-provoking titles such as Rome Can
Be Built in a Day.
“I dabbled into a newspaper article on looting of
federal funds by some people, the looted funds they use to build estates,
mansions, companies etc, can be used to build a better Nigeria, in a twinkle of
an eye; thus, Rome Can Be Built in a Day.”
The Port Harcourt based artist says “everything
around my nativity, and happenings inspire me, again, it affects my style of
painting, colours, drawings, etc.
“My philosophy of art and life is to create an
appreciation of continuous and spontaneous works in the same way that expresses
the inner self, so to create a social emancipation and the struggle for the
economy (recession).”
"First
Page, Three Chapters is an exhibition that borders on
narrative of change, as it affects three artists from different cultural
backgrounds. Though two chapters are similar which they choose to express through
painting, yet, the approach to subject matter quite differs,” explains Asemokha.
The exhibition to him
“is the meeting point, the first step that counts, the exhibition looks into
the relationship between man and his society and how they affect one another
and the resulting change, positive or otherwise. It is the light of man and
societal change that our chapters are compiled, different as it may seem, yet
as each page flips, the narrative becomes woven.
“Everyday through
life is an experience, write your experience with all that you may find, write
your story in your own Hieroglyphs, write for your generation, write for
posterity, write till all the canvases scream your stories to the future.”
About the artists
Orlu was born in Enugu State and hails from Rivers
State. He is a member of Society of Nigeria Artists (SNA), Rivers Chapter,
graduated with a B.A in fine arts and design from the University of Port
Harcourt. He is a full-time art.
Asemokha was born in
Edo state. He graduated from Auchi Polytechnic in Edo State, where he bagged an
Ordinary National Diploma in Building. His creative zeal led him to further a
career in Arts at the Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife, where he obtained a
BA in Fine and Applied Arts.
Adegbola was born in Ibadan in 1991. From Oyo State. A
graduate of the Department of Fine and Applied Arts, Obafemi Awolowo
University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Having practiced professionally for four years as a
documentary/fine-art and product photographer developing visual contents for
various start-up brands, he has also cut across other types of photography
which includes portrait photography, Product photography, food photography and
event.
(First image; Seeing is Believing by Orlu. Second image; The Threshold of Self Realisation by Asemokha. Third image; Destiny by Adegbola)
By Udemma Chukwuma
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