Art x Adẹ

While returning to school after the Easter break, a friend suggested that I accompany him to a neighbouring village. Two other close friends joined us. I had heard about a pot that could speak but had never seen one before. My friend claimed they were common and assured us he could take us to see a talking pot. Upon arrival, I was ushered into what appeared to be a small living room. There, I saw something shaped like a pot, covered with a red cloth, adorned with markings that resembled two eyes, a mouth, and a nose. An old man welcomed me and beckoned me to sit down. He called his oracle by name three times, then turned to me and asked the oracle to speak directly to me. Suddenly, I heard a voice emanating from the area where the pot was placed. As it spoke, I noticed the part marked as the mouth moving in sync with the words I was hearing. It greeted me three times. To my astonishment, the pot called me by my middle name and my surname. By this point, I was visibly ner...

                          The Cocoa Trees  This painting was inspired by my deep personal affinity with cocoa. My father, along with his siblings and close friends, had leased a large hectare of land for the cultivation of cocoa and other cash crops in Ẹda, in Ekiti State, South West Nigeria. The plantation was a vital source of funding for our education. In fact, my father’s ownership of the farm, located far from our village, gave me my first experience of travelling by lorry. I remember watching trees speeding past, a dazzling and unforgettable experience. For us children, the excitement of the journey often outweighed the purpose behind it. During school holidays, we would travel with my father—sometimes my mother—and many members of our extended family. We would leave early in the morning, often in a lorry that had journeyed all the way from Ikarẹ, about 25 miles away. As we departed, the whole vill...