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Demola Ogunajo: Area Art

Past exhibition
24 June - 15 July 2021
  • Overview
  • Video
  • Works
  • Virtual Exhibition
  • Installation Views
Overview
Demola Ogunajo, Area Art

kó is pleased to present a solo exhibition by Demola Ogunajo, titled Area Art. This body of work is influenced by the aesthetics of local sign posters and bumper stickers adorned on trucks, busses, and motorcycles in Nigeria.


Demola Ogunajo is interested in the signs and symbols of his environment, transforming everyday experiences with a spectacular twist. Ogunajo depicts ordinary scenes with an otherworldly dimension, one of angels, astronauts and superheroes. His paintings are metaphors that examine the philosophical complexities of modern life, often with spiritual, religious or political undertones.

Among the busy traffic in Nigeria, it is impossible not to notice the colorful embellishments on many vehicles that dot the roadways. In this informal tradition of street culture, drivers curate their own visual message that projects their personal values and tastes. Ogunajo dissects these popular symbols and re-engages them in surreal and fantastical ways. In Area Art, Ogunajo forms a seemingly haphazard selection of symbols —from lions, tigers and birds to clowns, dragons and butterflies. Collectively, they form stories that become signifiers for universal struggles, ones that are biblical in nature. In his canvases, we encounter the mythical battle of good versus evil, alluding to themes of innocence, transcendence and redemption. Ogunajo counters these heavy philosophical dilemmas with humor, often adapting a playful spin that suggests that love might perhaps always win.

 

Demola’s work speaks to identity, the human condition, the exploration of existence and the universality of divinity. He explores themes highlighting deep and profound concepts including heightened consciousness, ascension, divinity and enlightenment - expressed through symbols, archetypes, paradoxes, figures and text. These themes are a direct reflection of Demola’s own psyche and spiritual experiences.

The term “Area Art” is defined by the playful adoption of mass signage from contemporary advertising, comic books and consumerist obsession, partly as a rejection of traditional art values, such as historical painting, in favour of the mundanity of popular culture. The word “area” in Nigerian street parlance is used to describe working class communities and the term “Area Art” refers to the mass artistic production that emerges in public spaces. Demola Ogunajo deploys in his paintings the visual vocabulary (maxims, caricature, colours and religious iconography) of such populist images and objects into new forms of knowledge production.

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Video
Works
  • Demola Ogunajo, Nice guy, 2015
    Demola Ogunajo, Nice guy, 2015
  • Demola Ogunajo, Individual Love , 2019
    Demola Ogunajo, Individual Love , 2019
  • Demola Ogunajo, I love me, 2015
    Demola Ogunajo, I love me, 2015
  • Demola Ogunajo, Tune in and turn out, 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Tune in and turn out, 2017
  • Demola Ogunajo, Pepper, 2019
    Demola Ogunajo, Pepper, 2019
  • Demola Ogunajo, Roar, 2019
    Demola Ogunajo, Roar, 2019
  • Demola Ogunajo, So juicy sweet , 2019
    Demola Ogunajo, So juicy sweet , 2019
  • Demola Ogunajo, Merriment I, 2013
    Demola Ogunajo, Merriment I, 2013
  • Demola Ogunajo, Merriment II, 2013
    Demola Ogunajo, Merriment II, 2013
  • Demola Ogunajo, Plankton Highway I, 2016
    Demola Ogunajo, Plankton Highway I, 2016
  • Demola Ogunajo, Plankton Highway II, 2016
    Demola Ogunajo, Plankton Highway II, 2016
  • Demola Ogunajo, Bling, 2015
    Demola Ogunajo, Bling, 2015
  • Demola Ogunajo, Decapitation , 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Decapitation , 2017
  • Demola Ogunajo, Comot 4 road and chop assembly, 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Comot 4 road and chop assembly, 2017
  • Demola Ogunajo, Holy Grail of Vices, 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Holy Grail of Vices, 2017
  • Demola Ogunajo, Superboy, 2014
    Demola Ogunajo, Superboy, 2014
  • Demola Ogunajo, Divine ice cream seller, 2013
    Demola Ogunajo, Divine ice cream seller, 2013
  • Demola Ogunajo, Ise Oluwa Ni, 2009
    Demola Ogunajo, Ise Oluwa Ni, 2009
  • Demola Ogunajo, New Rainment, 2014
    Demola Ogunajo, New Rainment, 2014
  • Demola Ogunajo, Area Banner, 2018
    Demola Ogunajo, Area Banner, 2018
  • Demola Ogunajo, Green Tiger Canceled, 2015
    Demola Ogunajo, Green Tiger Canceled, 2015
  • Demola Ogunajo, Helmets from heaven I, 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Helmets from heaven I, 2017
  • Demola Ogunajo, Helmets from heaven II, 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Helmets from heaven II, 2017
  • Demola Ogunajo, Helmets from heaven III, 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Helmets from heaven III, 2017
  • Demola Ogunajo, Shield series I, 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Shield series I, 2017
  • Demola Ogunajo, Shield series II, 2017
    Demola Ogunajo, Shield series II, 2017
Virtual Exhibition
Installation Views
  • Img 9099
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  • Img 9088
  • Img 8989
  • Img 8993
  • Img 8978
  • Img 9031
  • Img 9033
  • Img 8961
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Related artist

  • Demola Ogunajo

    Demola Ogunajo

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