Olamilekan Okunade

Okunade Olamilekan (b. 1988) is a contemporary Nigerian artist who specializes in painting. He is a full-time practising studio artist residing in Oyo state Nigeria. He was born in Lagos State Nigeria. He graduated in 2017 with a Btech (Hon. Fine and Applied Arts) from Ladoke Akintola University, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria. His works are strongly influenced by and reflect the cultural happenings and situations that affect the black community laying more emphasis on women and their places in society with the medium choice of acrylic paint on canvas. He has his core source of inspiration from his immediate environment, gender physiognomy, and the ups and downs of the struggle of society.

With numerous successful joint exhibitions and competitions under his belt, he emerged among the top 100 finalists for Life in My City (Limcaf) in 2019, he won 2nd runner-up at the Jesudahunsi art competition, 2008, The Bells at Ota. In 2015, he won the award of the most creative student in LAUTECH. He exhibited at the international art fair Suzhou Expo in China, 2021, MoDhafest Art in Healing Exhibition, USA, 2022, Yoruba ni mi Gallery, UK, 2022 and the art fair of Eco Bank in conjunction with Soto Art Gallery 2024, Lagos.

Okunade Olamilekan is a seasoned professional artist whose works are extensively collected both home and abroad.He has a residential atelier where he works and also trains young emerging artists for internship. He is a member of Global Arts in Medicine and also a co-founder of Sip and Paint Your Mental Health.

Artist Statement

The ideas, issues and events arising from man's quest to contain and contend with these forces form the subject of my paintings. Given this background, my paintings are subtle but much defined with interlocking and wedges of colour combined like a mosaic to produce a solid, architectural structure, enhanced by the textured surface of the paint with women accorded with prominent attention, focus and more emphasis in my composition.

Women live in a male-dominated society, based on local cultural traditions with few rights and are at the receiving end of men's activities and yet strive to eke out and sustain living.

I celebrate them by weaving my composition around them most times in their hours of needs, joy, pain and other human activities.