Descripción de la Exposición
We are so proud to announce that OOA GALLERY will represent from 6 February two high potential Nigerian artists: REWA and OLUWOLE OMOFEMI.
During the duo show "EMANCIPATION", REWA will present her captivating portraits and Oluwole Omofemi the strenght and beauty of black women.
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REWA
"There’s an unmistakable air of confidence and self assuredness that radiates from the eyes of the muses, REWA masterfully captures on her canvases. Their gazes both invite you in like an old friend, yet still intimidate enough to keep you at bay, in the knowledge that the viewer is not entirely worthy of their presence.
Regality is the phrase best used to describe REWA’s work. Not in the gaudy sense that imposes its will, or shines so brightly one is forced to turn away. But in the quiet, subdued manner that commands respect and holds your attention effortlessly.
REWA’s bold figurative portraits are by all accounts an extension of the artist herself. A melting pot of varying influences, cultures, and experiences that have shaped and moulded a person that is as comfortable haggling the price of lace fabric in the heart of the hustle and bustle of Onitsha market, as they are blitzing through the high end boutiques of London and Paris.
Born and raised between Nigeria and England, REWA’s hybrid upbringing greatly informs her work, and indeed perfectly depicts the sensation that is the modern ‘afropolitan’ woman. Forward thinking, progressive, uninhibited, and self-aware, yet still rooted, albeit loosely, in the expectations, duty and responsibility that tradition and ancient customs dictate.
In REWA’s case, that tradition and ancient custom is that of the Igbo people of South-East Nigeria, who are often described as Nigeria’s most industrious and enterprising, as well as their most independent of thought and practice. The ancient value system and custom of the Igbo people and their fierce independence is evidenced in the themes REWA unpacks in her portraits, seen through a contemporary lens. Essential themes such as the importance of coming of age, engagement, marriage and playing one’s part in their community and Igbo society at large are fundamental to REWA, and seamlessly blend the old with the modern; adapted, but never compromised to suit the times.
What stands REWA apart from most contemporary artists today, is that she transcends the title of artist, and is all but in name, a historian, and chronicler of the evolution of her ethnic group, nation and continent in real time. Through her work, we witness firsthand the assertion and confidence of women; their ability to code switch, and dip effortlessly between the West and the African continent whilst retaining their essence, and above all else the liberty of having options, and not being restricted by the confines of patriarchy and perpetually subject to the male gaze as art history is all too often guilty of.
Beyond being aesthetically captivating, REWA’s work is intellectually stimulating, thought provoking and educational. Although working through the medium of acrylic paints, it is well within reason and justified to liken the importance of her practise to that of fellow compatriots and creative greats, Chinua Achebe and Chimamanda Ngozie Ndichie, whose work, like REWA’s has put an illuminating spotlight on both past and contemporary Nigerian society; its inhabitants and their worldview.
Raphael Dapaah
Art writer, consultant & contributor |Dapaah Gallery |Polo Lifestyles Magazine
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OLUWOLE OMOFEMI
"Oluwole Omofemi’s work can best be described in his own words, ‘unapologetic’. His muses; black women depicted with skin as dark and rich as the oil that serves as the lifeblood of the artist’s home country of Nigeria, are adorned with deep tribal marks, and crowned with engulfing halo-esque afros that are reminiscent of past martyrs of the black power movement that swept the global African diaspora in the late 1960’s right through to the early 1980’s.
Oluwole’s depiction of untamed manes, midnight hue skin, and deep, penetrating tribal marks is a rallying cry against what he views as the deterioration of the pride and self-esteem amongst his ‘black sisters’ today; both in Nigeria, and abroad, whom he believes have been most subjected by post-colonial indoctrination and pandering to Western society’s ideal of beauty and civilisation.
Raised predominantly in the company of his grandfather who shaped Oluwole’s worldview and greatly informed his understanding of his culture, and his appreciation for his heritage and identity; Oluwole was inspired by his grandfather’s period which nurtured the generation of Nigerians who fought for independence against colonial rule, and embraced the notion of self determination, and their Africanness.
Prevalent in his work are overtones of nostalgia and longing for what the artist suggests to be a golden age for the esteem, strength and beauty of black women. Conversely, Oluwole’s work infers that as time has proceeded, there has actually been a regression in the true liberty and emancipation of black women as far as their ability to embrace their most true and authentic versions of themselves, which is anchored in their Africanness, seen and felt viscerally through their skin tone and hair.
Moreover, Oluwole’s commentary on the suggested regression and plight of modern black women, and the need to reflect on and return to their former glory, has implications for the familial and relationship dynamic between black men and black women, and the topical subject of the decline of intermarriage, understanding and cohesion between the two.
Yet, despite what on face value could appear to be a bleak outlook, Oluwole’s overarching raison d’être and mission is to showcase afrocentric pride, which he maintains can only truly be championed through how black women, his muses, view themselves, and in turn are viewed by others. For Oluwole, true liberty and emancipation for Africa, and black people at large, can only be achieved and realised once, black women are free to be their true selves and embraced and celebrated as they are."
Raphael Dapaah
Art writer, consultant & contributor | Dapaah Gallery | Polo Lifestyles Magazine
Exposición. 17 dic de 2024 - 16 mar de 2025 / Museo Picasso Málaga / Málaga, España
Formación. 01 oct de 2024 - 04 abr de 2025 / PHotoEspaña / Madrid, España
