FEATURED ARTIST OF THE MONTH

Featured Artist Akintayo Akintobi(Nigeria)

Akintayo Akintobi Ezekiel was born 11th of march 1994, native of Odeomu, Osun state. He Obtained B.A/ED (fine arts) from Obafemi Awolowo University specializing in painting. He discovered his talent at age 7 through drawing of cartoons and comic action figures. When the time came to pursue a career in higher institution, it wasn’t a difficult decision to make as he as already developed a keen interest in art since a tender age. He  has participated in several art exhibitions in Nigeria and abroad, likewise some art competitions. He is an impressionistic painter with the use of different brilliant colours, motifs and patterns. Most of his paintings are based on African people, culture, stories and economic situation around him. Art is a way of life just like culture is. Art has always been a central way of sharing our way of life, expressing our inner most thoughts, feelings and ideas.For over two years, I have drawn my inspiration as an artist from human emotions, unique behaviour and reactions to situations in my environment and society which have profound impact on our contemporary world today. The impact of these dynamic reactions has enabled me comprehend as an artist differently who, why and how people live and react differently to situations in my society, especially the Yorubas (a West African people living mostly in the Nigerian southwest). Sometimes traditional Yoruba motifs/ symbols and patterns are silently incorporated within an array of irregularly shaped fragments of colour, these showcases my identity.Just as people react differently to situations in my society so do people react likewise to colour. Hence, over the past few years I have adopted the use of vibrant and brilliant colours as the best means to express these reactions as an artist. These dynamic reactions often share similar attributes such as high intensity; they are attractive and easily seen from afar. Only a handful of colours shares these attributes such as white, cerulean blue, lemon yellow, Orange, violet and light green. In my varied approaches to making art which includes painting, mixed media and other forms of exploration, a handful of my art works are  done with the ARCYLIC medium.He works as a full time studio in Lagos, Nigeria as he continues to explore and constantly researching on new concepts and possibilities in art.
Even though it hasn’t been a smooth journey taking art as a profession in my country, I see myself pursing my art career to the fullest, bringing new possibilities and concepts to art and owning an art foundation to support less privileged kids who are interested in art as well as  young upcoming artist in my country in the future. There are lot of challenges an artist faces especially young artists in a developing country. I will love to encourage and support young artists to the best of my ability.Finally I would love my art to serve as a therapy for people to find comfort as well as change the perspective of people around me and the world as a whole.
Art may not bring about the numerous desired changes that the world currently needs, nevertheless, it can change the perception of an individual, therefore slowly spreading into different lives to tell the tale.