By Henry Akubuiro
In the last decade, Oluwole Omofemi has solidified himself as one of the lionisedNigerian artists with outstanding works that are sought after in the international art market. His popularity also reflects in regular exhibitions abroad and his ratcheting clientele base.
Recently, he held a three-day, solo art exhibition, which began on Friday, May 23, 2025, at Akoje Gallery, London, formerly known as Signature Art. It was attended by many art collectors and art lovers. The London exhibition, “Reverence: Chapter 1 – 7 – Jean Michael Basquait,” is part of a wider seven solo exhibitions envisioned by the artist to appreciate masters who have impacted on his artistic journey, shaped by parallel histories, shared cultural rhythms, and deep emotional undercurrents. Each exhibition will feature seven paintings depicting the values and inner truths the artist holds dear.
A curatorial statement on the London solo exhibition said “Reverence…” captures an intimate reflection on Omofemi’s early years in Ibadan, a time characterised by struggle, introspection and a relentless search for meaning and mixing with kindred spirits who weren’t given to rosy lives. Their lives, hence, inspired the seven paintings of this exhibition.
“The idea behind the exhibition was to pay homage to some artists who contributed to shaping me and also helping me to grow. They are artists who have a significant impact on contemporary society,” he said. “Basquait was one of those artists who inspired my early childhood as an artist. That is why I created seven works for this exhibition in London.”
According to him, the exhibitions were Omofemi trying to tell a story from a common man in the street of Ibadan, using Basquiat as a point to communicate it in a proper way. It has always been his desire to explore works which mostly revolve around women.
The seven works include “Ratel King”, “Self Throne”, “Unbroken”, Rooted Urban, and “Message to Humanity”, “Behold Price”, and “Rayel Queen.” Each of these seven artworks have deliberately chosen captions in the backgrounds.
For instance, “Ratel Queen “ echoes a story within – “Born by Mistake” – placed at a corner, with a red line cancelling the last word. “I believe nobody is born by mistake. Nobody came to this world by mistake. Every act that leads to childbirth is a deliberate and intentional act,” the artist said.
Self Throne has a running social message: ‘No Crown, No Kings.” He explained: “The Western culture of a king has changed our view about marriage, whereby you see a lot of our females declaring to be feminists, which wasn’t originally associated with Africans. Your crown is your throne. Once you lose your throne, you have lost it.”
In Beyond Price, the artist tagged the lady in the painting “Not for Sale.” The lady featured here is identical to that in four other paintings. “The idea behind her amazes me,” said Omofemi. The reason I wrote ‘Not for Sale’ has to do with misconceptions on who she was and what she represented; and it was from a personal encounter.
He recalled: “This girl often comes to my studio dressed in a manner that exposes parts of her body, and people tend to judge her because of the way she dresses, because sometimes she comes to the studio wearing shorts. So people look at her from that perspective, putting a price tag on her. One day, I sat her down to speak to her about her dressing, and all she said was she could dress any way she wanted. We tend to call women who put on clothes that reveal parts of their bodies in this manner prostitutes, which is a misconception.”
The painting, “The Ratel King” was inspired by a popular Nigerian social critic and activist, Verydark. Of course, Omofemi’s art has always revolved around the afrocentric pride – the hair fashion and the neglected African beauty. Needless to say, “ am also making a cultural statement with them. I see the hair as the antenna that connects us – the blacks – to the Spiritual Being – God. The hair in my paintings signifies power, strength, power, freedom and liberation,” he said.
Similarly, “Unbroken” is a painting inspired by an asthmatic person. Omofemi had seen this particular individual suffer several attacks. At first, he ran away, not knowing what to do. Each time she suffered an attack, the individual depicted in the painting would keep declaring she was a conqueror. Basically, I am trying to tell a story about her experiences in life,” he told Daily Sun.