Bolaji Ogunwo

There is a certain luminosity that emanates from Bolaji Ogunwo’s works as they reveal a delicately rich application of a heavy palette. Ogunwo, who has a BA in Fine Art from the University of Benin (2006 – 2010) and is currently a Ph.D. research student as well undertaking a lecturing positioin in the Department of Creative Arts, University of Lagos, spokeof his art as finding expression in impressionism. Five years after graduation from Benin, paintings created by Ogunwo, reveal a significant shift in their thematic preoccupation.

 Despite the fact that its subject matter is not new, his oeuvre re-captured  a series of paintings depicting  the Maroko mangrove swamps, log houses and cubicles reinforced by zinc sheeting, cardboards and objects found from cannibalized automobiles. Sometims, these make his compositions a blurred and clustered image of a scavenger’s heaven. Ogunwo however, still makes the occasional return to those themes.

His strong interest in the diverse cultures within the geography of Nigeria has not only inspired works based on the fervour of contemporary traditional Yoruba festive mode, but cuts across the spheres of royal equestrian displays in the northern part of Nigeria and cultural orientation among people from other regions as well.