Be Brave, 2022

Abayomi Odetomi  

Abayomi Odetomi's paintings celebrate the beauty of Africa, its people, and its connections with the splendor of nature. Stylish women in trendy fashion, the major subjects in his often-surreal compositions, are depicted in closeness with exotic animals, plants, and flowers. 

The results are art pieces that elevate and inspire the percipient to reflect upon life as a chain of elements with deep connections. His canvases are usually of lone female figures in their youth, which is the artist's vision of strong and independent African women, whom he imbues with sentimental adoration for the enhancement of their African identity. 

An aspect of Odetomi's style is his distinctive use of bright colors for exploring the mysterious beauties of the universe, with the immediacy of acrylic, enabling him to achieve these ideas and expressions on canvas. The backgrounds of his paintings are far from drab, as he works them with warm colors to blend with the central images. The entire shapes and forms in the compositions portray the surrealness of the human and other forms from nature in one space. Beyond the inspiration he gained from great artists, his style has also been forged and nuanced by a range of personal experiences.

The depictions of melanated people seek to preach the links existing between the mother continent of Africa and its global diaspora. Through his gestural brush works, Odetomi's work elicits joy, grace, and emotional responses that could be perceived from the grace of the figures in his works. This informs his belief that celebrating one's culture and identity will lead to the remodeling of our imaginations, thereby allowing people to realize that we must not abdicate our identities even when we open ourselves to others