Come along with me and discover black artists who are making noise at one of the most famous art fairs in the world in the heart of Switzerland, Art Basel.
Read MoreAyanfe Olarinde: IN THE BEGINNING AND SO IT GOES...
3 MIN READ
in the beginning and so it goes…
by Ayanfe Olarinde
JD Malat Gallery, London, 13 April – 6 May 2023
If you have been reading my journal then you know that I love the work of artist Ayanfe Olarinde. I wanted to fill you in on her debut solo in London titled In The Beginning And So It Goes… taking place at the JD Malat Gallery from 13 April until 6 May 2023. This show is an absolute must see if you happen to live or be in LDN.
Through this solo show Olarinde offers up a bold, crisp and beautiful collection of works. Tapping into and exploring the impacts of the material and folkloric worlds of the artist’s native Yoruba Nigerian culture. Olarinde intertwines the past and the present seamlessly throughout the exhibition achieving this through her multimedium approach using ink, acrylic, charcoal, wool and even coffee.
These works are investigating the human condition, touching on issues of identity, belonging, and tradition. For example, my favorite pieces in the show the triptych Aeroplani o’dabo I, II and III (the contentment song), 2023 depicts the protagonists balancing what seems to be the world but are only feather weight paper planes. Olarinde manages to evoke pain, longing and strength by way of only the regard of the protagonists, achieving this in such a subtle way. For me, it’s all in the eyes!
There is so much to uncover and discover within each thought-provoking piece.
Aeroplani o’dabo I (the contentment song), 2023
Ink, Acrylic, Oil pastel and Coffee on Canvas
Aeroplani o’dabo II (the contentment song), 2023
Ink, Acrylic, Oil pastel, Sticker Vinyl and Coffee on Canvas
Aeroplani o’dabo III (the contentment song), 2023
Ink, Acrylic, Oil pastel and Coffee on Canvas
My Grandmother, whenever she came visiting from the village, would gather my siblings around at specific times to tell us stories, many of which were accompanied by songs with plenty of meanings. This became a culture and a continuous ritual whenever she came around. – Ayanfe Olarinde.
Genesis, 2023, Ink, Acrylic, oil pastel and wool on canvas, image courtesy JD Malat gallery.
The hero piece, in my opinion, of the exhibition titled Genesis, 2023, instantly brought me back to my own Caribbean heritage. To a vague patchwork of memories of being in Haiti as a child and attending carnival. Women dancing to the tanbou drum, chickens in the back yard, the smell of woodfire and elders telling us tales. How these memories and stories still to this day have travelled through time, to the future. Somehow living on today through me and as evidence in this wonderful exhibition though Olarinde.
Do stop by the gallery and if not, you can check out the exhibition catalog here.
Fall in love with this artist’s works just as I have.
WHERE TO see THE Exhibiton
'In The Beginning And So It Goes…' by Ayanfe Olarinde
13 April – 6 May 2023
30 Davies Street, London W1K 4NB
Tell us what you think of Ayanfe Olarinde’s debut in London.
Join the conversation, share in the comments!
You might also like this related article: ARTISTS I LOVE: AYANFE OLARINDE
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Read MoreARTISTS I LOVE: KADIR NELSON
2 MIN READ
I watched the recent US inauguration, I could not articulate how I felt. Particularly in light of all that went down on Jan 6 and last year’s civil unrest.
While scrolling through my Instagram feed one of my favorite artists posted the image of this painting which somehow embodied everything I was feeling.
The artist is Kadir Nelson and the painting he posted, “Sweet Liberty”. A rush of emotion took over me as I saw my little self in the image.
“Sweet Liberty” courtesy www.kadirnelson.com
I thought of the dream that I had been sold growing up. That America is a place of opportunity for its folk. A place where you can make it if you worked hard (like my parents had done). Growing up as a black girl in America in the ‘80s and ‘90s I always felt overlooked. The feeling of not being good enough permeated my soul. The lack of representation on my tv did not help much either.
The painting evokes so many sentiments, something Nelson is clever at in his work. A prominent African American artist who has been featured on the cover of The New Yorker magazine, garnered many awards and did the artwork for a Drake album usually depicts historical accounts and valiant subjects.
For this particular painting the central character is a little black girl delicately propping up an American flag. She stands tall with reserve, a little sadness in her eyes and a timid smile. Nelson artfully conveys the pain of America’s past. The blue flower nestled in her hair representing hope and promise of its future. Her rolled up sleeves representing the hard work of her ancestors. These themes crystalized for me at the inauguration when the 22-year-old African American poet Amanda Gorman recited her work christened “The Hill we climb”. In it Gorman declares,
“we the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president, only to find herself reciting to one.”
Seeing this young woman in her canary tailored coat and braids crowned with a touch of red, articulate what she too has experienced through such a moving poem surprisingly gave me hope. That in the future, little black girls will have the representation that I craved growing up.
I ended up reposting Nelson’s image. It supposed everything that I felt about what had transpired in the last month in my beloved America. How I felt about my own “Sweet Liberty”.
Thank you Kadir Nelson!
Black girls and young women face insurmountable odds in America. I have donated to a fund that I hold dear called The Black Girl Freedom Fund. The fund will support work that advances the wellbeing of Black girls and their families, including work that centers and advances the power of Black girls through organizing, asset mapping, capacity-building, legal advocacy, and narrative work that seeks to shift structural violence enacted against Black girls.
Little me, NYC circa 1983
WHERE TO FIND THE ARTISTS
Find out more about - WWW.KADIRNELSON.COM
Find out more about - AMANDA GORMAN
See Amanda Gorman in - VOGUE MAGAZINE
HOW TO SUPPORT BLACK GIRLS
Support and donate - WWW.1BILLION4BLACKGIRLS.ORG
Tell us what you think of Kadir Nelson’s painting or tell us what you thought of Amada Gorman’s poem. Share in the comments!