Nigerian-born innovator and musician, Oluwatosin ‘Mr Eazi’ Ajibade has added another accomplishment to his resume by opening his music and art exhibition experience, inspired by his new album The Evil Genius.
The 32-year-old art enthusiast curated this exhibition – celebrating love, freedom, happiness, and the themes from his album – with Gallery 1957 during Accra Cultural Week.
Angelica Litta Modignani, the gallery manager, expressed her excitement about hosting the exhibition at Gallery 1957.
She stated, “We are thrilled to exhibit his powerful and thought-provoking collection to our audiences.”
The exhibition opened to the public on September 13, 2023, with a host of invited guests, including Azu Nwagbogu, Kwame Eric Goka, Phil Philips (Barbados High Commission), Daniel Osafo, Ameyaw Debrah, Gabby Otchere-Darko and many others in attendance.
Following its inaugural presentation in Accra, the exhibition will travel to London as part of 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair’s Special Projects from 12-15 October 2023 at Somerset House.
The exhibition features 16 pieces from 12 artists selected by Mr Eazi, representing eight African countries, including Dominique Zinkpè (Cotonou, Benin), Patricorel (Cotonou, Benin), Tesprit (Lomé, Togo), and Samuel Tete-Katchan (Accra, Ghana), who were present at the event.
Other artists included are Tammy Sinclair (Abuja, Nigeria), Alpha ODH (Nairobi, Kenya), Chinaza Nkemka (Lagos, Nigeria), Edozie Anedu (Lagos, Nigeria), Elangwe Sesse (Cameroon), Ikechukwu Christian (Lagos, Nigeria), Kufa Makwavarara (Zimbabwe/South Africa), and Sandra Seghir (Dakar, Senegal)
Selecting visual collaborators was informal and instinctual for him, much like with his musical ones. “I just liked their art and reached out to them,” he notes.
“We’d send them the song, they’d listen, and we’d have a call and talk about what everything means. I said, ‘I’m going to give them the freedom to go create.”
Mr Eazi worked on this project for over two years and sees it as an opportunity to share his vision with the world and spark important conversations about Contemporary African Art.
The exhibition is open to the public from 10 am to 7 pm, from September 14 to September 18.