MATUJI : A child who survived is the first solo exhibition of the Houston based Nigerian artist, Gbenga Oladipupo Ayeni. The artworks in this exhibition are inspired by the notion of “The creative adult ” from Ayeni’s lived experience as a child who is fasinated by story telling .

He employs the digital tools in painting his experiences and blurring the line between fiction and reality. Ayeni’s academic background in Art and Design from the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, shapes his artistic process, one where he is constantly working across traditional and digital art. In the works here, he starts with a digital drawing, and afterwards uses acrylic, charcoal, and ink to interact with the piece. The final piece is the colourful canvas that is informed through the artist’s pain of navigating a new identity, wrestling with the pressure of starting again, and the restrictions in connecting with opportunities in this “greener pasture.”

The artist borrows deeply from his Yorùba culture in engaging with these works. This is seen in the titles for the works which are in Yorùbá, and which lends a deeper meaning into the works. The visual forms in the exhibition reminds me of many myths and legends of Yoruba people and the world created by the Nigerian Author D.O Fagunwa in his 1938 book Ògbójú Ode Nínú Igbó Irúnmolè . Where Fagunwa created a world of gods, spirits, ghosts, magic, and witchcrafts, Ayeni is engaging with his own world, where reality and fiction clashes.

Expressed in bold and vivid colours, these mix-media works were made to evoke feelings of awe and a deep introspection, and Ayeni has invited us all to share in his journey and gaze at these colourful paintings brought to life through a paintbrush of mix-realities.

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