The creative paintings of 20 emerging artists are currently on display at the One Art Gallery space, Lagos. The event is the sixth edition of The Artists Commune.
The artworks on display include eight digital and twelve non-digital beautiful art pieces.
Themed “Into The Multiverse,” the exhibition, which opened to the public on Sunday, May 28 and runs till June 30, 2023, features a hybrid show of digital and physical exhibits.
The Artists Commune is an artist-run gallery and community established to create a platform for emerging artists to showcase their works professionally while offering them an opportunity to ease into the Art industry.
On display at the white walls of the gallery are captivating pieces of different forms of artworks of Abdulazeez Ganiyat’s oil on canvas titled, ‘the healer also needs healing,’ Akingbade Adeniyi’s ‘Realest One’, a sculpture of a man on locks made with toothpicks and wooden skewers.
Also on display are Claire Oluwaseun George’s paintings on Ankara, and Nwankwo Uchenna’s paradoxical painting on canvas, which he titled, ‘Curiosity did not kill the cat’.
According to the Director of One Art Gallery, Mr Abiola Bodunrin, the artworks were selected from exceptional works of 20 artists and were picked randomly out of 150 entries.
He said: “We had no clear criteria. We were looking for exceptional work and didn’t want to leave anyone out. This ongoing exhibition is called The Artists Commune, and the idea is to get different arts enthusiasts and art lovers to gather in the same space and have a conversation.
“We did an open call, and about 150 artists applied to showcase their works, and we were able to select 20. And out of the 20, we had to divide them into digital and non-digital artists and collections from female and male artists,” he said.
Explaining why digital artwork is the way forward for emerging contemporary artists, Bodunrin said, “Digital art is not entirely new; it’s just that we have evolved, especially during the covid-19 period when NFT (online marketplace for artists) became very big. That propelled digital artists to reach wider audiences and sell their works big.
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“The internet has made everything more accessible; more opportunities have arisen because of the internet. We have brilliant Nigerian Artists that are displayed all over the world. It’s a lot easier now because galleries abroad- in the Middle East, the Indian market, and the rest of them can easily reach artists because of social media. Tech has been a major player in making African artists visible worldwide.”
On what informed the setting up of the gallery, Bodunrin, who is also known as Peniel The Artist explained that the decision was borne out of his struggles as a young artist.
He said that his journey as an artist was not an easy one and resonates with some of the struggles many young artists face, hence, the need to create a space to support and encourage artists with exceptional crafts.
“I have been an artist professionally for half a decade. There have been a lot of challenges. It was some of the things I experienced personally that made me set up this place to give opportunities to young artists. Some of the challenges are funds, platforms, and PR,” he said.
As a multimedia artist, Bodunrin said he is foreseeing a future where all forms of art such as dance, music, and visual art would come together in one space in the gallery.
He also urged young artists who are at their crossroads to stick to one path adding, “Art is a very jealous craft, if your attention is divided you might not be able to maximise the opportunities. Let them stick to art and keep getting better and try to put themselves out there as often as possible.”