Art x Adẹ

This is one of my earliest paintings—an impressionist interpretation of Agbo-Olode , a traditional masquerade and a central figure in the annual festival of Ogidi Kingdom, Kogi State. I’ll never forget one particular day during the Agbo Festival when I was a child. That morning, I was on my usual round hawking àkàrà (bean cakes) for my mother when I caught sight of an approaching Agbo masquerade. Instinctively, I ran toward an elderly man nearby, hoping he would shield me. But before I could reach him, three more Agbo masquerades emerged from different directions, closing in fast. The man stood frozen, unable to protect me, and panic surged through me. I screamed and bolted toward home, the tray of àkàrà on my head slowing me down. In desperation, I flung it aside—the bean cakes scattered across the ground, and coins spilled from my pocket. I didn’t stop to look back. I ran all the way home, breathless but safe. For the rest of the festival, which still had a few days ...

This painting, Ogidi’s Quiet Wonder, was inspired by a deeply spiritual and serene moment I experienced with my wife in Ogidi, Nigeria, in August 2019. It was around 8 p.m., and we were sitting on the front balcony of our countryside home, immersed in a quiet heart-to-heart conversation, when the moon suddenly rose and cast its luminous glow across Ayọnrọ Mountain. The sight stunned us—it felt like time paused, and the hand of God revealed a piece of heaven. I quickly took a photo, not wanting the moment to slip away. Upon returning to the UK, I translated that fleeting beauty into this 75 x 60 cm acrylic painting on canvas. Today, it hangs in my bedroom and is the first thing I see each morning—a daily reminder of God’s wonder and the grace to witness such beauty. "Beauty is the nature of God," and this piece is my expression of that truth.