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| Lemi Gariokwu |
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| Fela |
With over 25 beautiful paintings displayed at
Didi Museum, Victoria Island, Lagos, ‘Art’s Own Kind,’ Lemi Ghariokwu’s amazing
works surely attract any art lover. This Ghariokwu’s sixth solo exhibition in
Nigeria is dedicated to the loving memory of Oji Onuma and Efere Ozarko.
Powered by The Life House Art and curated
by Mrs. Ugoma Adegoke, the exhibition began on May 25, and ended on June 5,
2013. It showcased various aspects and new dimensions to the art of Ghariokwu,
one of Africa’s best artists, whose career in album cover art is 40 years.
Lemi is a creative graphic artist, cover
designer and illustrator. Some people described his work s as rebellious, political
and comical.
He has designed over2000 album covers for many musicians across the
globe and some of them include: Late Fela Anikulapo Kuti, whom he designed 26
album covers for and meeting Fela, according to Lemi, changed his
ideology/philosophy of life and boosted his career for he attained legendary
position through his contact with Fela. Others are Bob Marley, E. T. Mensah,
Osita Osadebe, Sunny Okosuns, Oliver De Coque, Lucky Dube, Mariam Makeba, 2Face
Idibia, Oris Wiliki and Mandators, among others.
Born in 1955, the artist who has lived most
of his life in Lagos, where he attended both primary and secondary education is
proud to tell whoever wants to know that he went through the University of
Kalakuta where he discovered himself.
His works, according to him, has been exhibited all over the world
including London, Brazil, New York and so on. He is on Phaidon Press’ list of
100 emerging and influential graphic designers in the world.
According to the curator, the exhibition,
‘Art’s Own Kind’ unveiled some of the world and Africa’s most influential
people iconized and immortalized in distinctive signature. “Lemi portraits and
presents thought provoking, axiomatic expressions, offering all an usual
opportunity to witness a recent evolution of Ghariokwu’s art and to view some
earlier works that have rarely been exhibited.”
Adegoke also said that: “it is my aim to
re-present this spectacular artist and human being in this unique exhibition
and celebration platform. He represents
possibility; his life and art story, a journey of dogged determination. Here is
a man who like Fela Kuti (his greatest collaborator and inspiration), has carved
a niche out of his own career and changed the art landscape and in fact, the
world,” she said.
Lemi holds a dual lifetime membership of
Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York, United States of America. His painting
‘Anoda Sistem’, created in 2002 is in the permanent collection there.
To him, art is in-born. He has written more
than 100 songs but yet to release them. He composed a hit song ‘Omolakeji’ in
1992 and duet with Mr. Ragamuffin, Daniel Wilson. He was made director for
Nigerian Music Awards in February 2007.
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