Follow Follow (shown above) features photographs of mothers carrying their child and objects on their head, surrounded by a strong and bright mustard orange granulated background.
On the lookout for the next, best artist who can help revamp your home? Looking for unconventional and exclusive pieces of artwork that could do fulfil this job? Then look no further. Meet ‘Tope Ajayi, a Nigerian-born and self-proclaimed multifaceted artist with a unique, bold and innovative style. Pouring a concoction of different mediums into one artwork, Ajayi fuses photographic pictures, traditional art and digital art altogether. He centres his pieces around a photographic photo and surrounds it with bright and daring colours to create something truly one-of-a-kind.
Ajayi’s time-based art aims to highlight the socio-political themes of the black experience. These include elements of Afro-centrism, Afro-futurism and Afro-surrealism. “My work process is deeply spiritual, sometimes experimental. But, very practical. When people can find themselves and their place in my art, then it has served its purpose”, spoke Ajayi on his art.
Ajayi’s latest series, ÒRÌSHÀ, is a celebration of womanhood and was inspired by the key women in his life. He describes this collection as an exploration between the thin lines of mythology and reality and questioning the truth while exploring the idea surrounding a goddess.
Dead Again portrays a stark contrast between a dark silhouette and radiant red to convey a personal and emotional tone, heightened with the postcards scattered at the bottom.
Multifaceted and multitalented indeed, Ajayi also engages in other side projects, including podcasts, film-making and spoken word poetry. His music podcast, titled The Alternative Groove Podcast, showcases new music from alternative artists around the world and his hometown in Nigeria. New episodes come out every biweekly Sunday, explores various genres and feature interviews with musical artists. When he’s not creating podcasts, Ajayi is consumed with another project titled ‘Project X’, a spoken word poetry scheme that he curates and produces. Alongside support from poets and writers, he hopes Project X will "open up on things the society and humanity in its entirety shies away from". Available from April 1st, a snippet from the first segment, called ‘Diary of a Lesbian’, is already uploaded on his Soundcloud. Ajayi describes this episode as “cut[ting] through what we understand as the norm vs. what we seem not to understand, which we often question”.
