Road to becoming, 2023

Toheeb Bankole  

Toheeb Adebayo Bankole is a multifaceted visual artist, author, and activist who resides in Lagos, Nigeria. In 2012 and 2015, he received his first art instruction at Talents Art Kingdom with Mr. O. J. Oyebola. He then attended the renowned University of Lagos, where he studied art.

He spent most of his youth creating toys from scraps, furniture from recycled wood from building sites and generally experimenting with his imagination using whatever materials he could find. His paintings often reflect his awareness of Yoruba culture, which he used to chronicle life events and the survival of the human race. By creative expression, Adebayo aspires to be an agent of change for a better society.

He has participated in a number of art exhibits, competitions, and initiatives.

Artist Statement

Courage, hard work, humility, and respect, all of which describe the Yoruba philosophical and cultural concept of Omoluwabi (a person of good character irrespective of religion), are the compass that guides my life and artistic practice. Inspired by Yoruba adages, the happenings around me, the thematic concepts in the works of contemporary Nigerian artists like Norbert Okpu, Bob Nosa, and diaspora artists like Prof. Moyo Okediji, and also the Araism painting technique of Mufu Onifade has influenced my style. My works often embody the infusion of impressionism style in contemporary painting techniques featuring analogous and triadic color schemes and I often work with acrylic and oil on canvas. Through the lens of Stoicism, I tend to create a world that is undeniably separate from the one we live in. Nurtured by the concept of Omoluawabi since birth, and growing up to learn about the Stoics' way of life, which emphasizes the greatest living virtues, is what inspired most of my artistic creations. Consequently, my art has sought to not only agitate for a free and fair society for all but also to document life events and human survival. I share personal experiences of how man's desires and behaviors often conflict with life's design and the dictates of nature.