1-54 CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN ART FAIR, LONDON 2024

The Politics of Pink’ a dual-booth presentation

1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair 2024

Somerset House, London

Few colours are as emotionally charged as pink. From its 2016 status as Pantone’s ‘Colour of the Year’ to its evolving yet sometimes contradictory associations in both Western and African culture, pink is political . Our two presenting artists may both be using the same hue, but each aims to provoke contrasting narratives to their audience. Olayombo’s blending of oils, acrylics, charcoal and pastels draws on Yoruba cultural motifs and explores themes of toxic masculinity and identity; while Segun’s deconstructed, Cubist-inspired approach with bold, fragmented shapes and exaggerated forms reimagines the female figure and challenges traditional representations of Black women in art.

One colour, two perspectives, and a global dialogue on its ever-changing significance.

‘The Politics of Pink’ is on view at booth W8 at the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair, Somerset House, London from 10 – 13 October 2024.

Deborah Segun

Deborah Segun (b. 1994) lives and works in London, UK. She obtained a degree in Fashion Design at the Polimoda Institute of Fashion Design and Marketing in Florence, Italy in 2017. Segun adopts a deconstructed, reductive, and almost Cubist approach to her paintings, incorporating fragmented and exaggerated shapes, faces, and forms that delineate the female figure in contemplation or repose. Segun’s work exaggerates the feminine silhouette and is perhaps a commentary on the representation of women in an art historical context, from the exaggerated proportions of The Venus of Willendorf or the multi-perspectival views of Picasso, who is an obvious inspiration to the young Lagos based artist.

Segun’s solo exhibitions include Letting Yourself Be, The Breeder (2024); Where Is My Mind?, BEERS London (2023); You Keep Going Through It, I’m Just Coming Back From It, Breeder Gallery, Athens, Greece (2022); The Little Things I Need to Make Me Whole, ADA contemporary art gallery, Accra, Ghana (2022); How To Fall In Love, BEERS London, (2021); Being Free, SMO Contemporary Art Gallery, Lagos, Nigeria (2020). Her work has been featured at Frieze London, Frieze New York, and the Armory Show.

Samuel Olayombo

Samuel Olayombo (b. 1991) is a Nigerian artist who studied fine and applied arts at the University of Benin. A lover of texture, Olayombo works with oils, acrylics, charcoal and pastels to create vibrant, dramatic, large-scale canvases of predominately male, non-gender normative portraits. His fascination with ‘scarring’ prevalent in certain Yoruba cultures as well as toxic masculinity, macho male culture, constructs of sexuality, gender roles, and equality are key narratives explored within his compositions. Olayombo pays homage to artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, Arja Valimaki, El Dragg Okwoju, Joshua Mensirionye, Barkley Hendricks, and Vittu Samuel in his work.

Olayombo’s solo exhibitions include Unchained: The Cotton Candy Cowboys, ADA contemporary art gallery, Accra, (2022); The Rebirth, dual exhibition, Gloria Gallery, Paris (2022); Think Pink, Go West, Institute Museum of Ghana, Accra (2023); Lotus Bloom Ranchers, Zidoun Bossuyt Gallery, Dubai (2023); The Sound of Our Souls, group exhibition, ADA contemporary art gallery x UTA artists space, Los Angeles (2023). His works are part of collections including The Hornik Collection, Los Angeles; The Dean Collection, Los Angeles, CA; Olym Collection, Brussels; Sir David Adjaye Collection; Elliot Perry Art Collection, Tennessee; Se Tinat Collection, Madrid; The Bentata Collection, Miami, FL, among others.

The Politics of Pink’ a dual-booth presentation

1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair 2024

Somerset House, London

Few colours are as emotionally charged as pink. From its 2016 status as Pantone’s ‘Colour of the Year’ to its evolving yet sometimes contradictory associations in both Western and African culture, pink is political . Our two presenting artists may both be using the same hue, but each aims to provoke contrasting narratives to their audience. Olayombo’s blending of oils, acrylics, charcoal and pastels draws on Yoruba cultural motifs and explores themes of toxic masculinity and identity; while Segun’s deconstructed, Cubist-inspired approach with bold, fragmented shapes and exaggerated forms reimagines the female figure and challenges traditional representations of Black women in art.

One colour, two perspectives, and a global dialogue on its ever-changing significance.

‘The Politics of Pink’ is on view at booth W8 at the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair, Somerset House, London from 10 – 13 October 2024.

  • DEBORAH SHEGUN

    Never Fully Present, 2023

    Acrylic on canvas

    179 x 162 cm

  • SAMUEL OLAYOMBO

    Michael Pleasant, 2022

    Acrylic on canvas

    170 x 130 cm

Deborah Segun

Deborah Segun (b. 1994) lives and works in London, UK. She obtained a degree in Fashion Design at the Polimoda Institute of Fashion Design and Marketing in Florence, Italy in 2017. Segun adopts a deconstructed, reductive, and almost Cubist approach to her paintings, incorporating fragmented and exaggerated shapes, faces, and forms that delineate the female figure in contemplation or repose. Segun’s work exaggerates the feminine silhouette and is perhaps a commentary on the representation of women in an art historical context, from the exaggerated proportions of The Venus of Willendorf or the multi-perspectival views of Picasso, who is an obvious inspiration to the young Lagos based artist.

Segun’s solo exhibitions include Letting Yourself Be, The Breeder (2024); Where Is My Mind?, BEERS London (2023); You Keep Going Through It, I’m Just Coming Back From It, Breeder Gallery, Athens, Greece (2022); The Little Things I Need to Make Me Whole, ADA contemporary art gallery, Accra, Ghana (2022); How To Fall In Love, BEERS London, (2021); Being Free, SMO Contemporary Art Gallery, Lagos, Nigeria (2020). Her work has been featured at Frieze London, Frieze New York, and the Armory Show.

Samuel Olayombo

Samuel Olayombo (b. 1991) is a Nigerian artist who studied fine and applied arts at the University of Benin. A lover of texture, Olayombo works with oils, acrylics, charcoal and pastels to create vibrant, dramatic, large-scale canvases of predominately male, non-gender normative portraits. His fascination with ‘scarring’ prevalent in certain Yoruba cultures as well as toxic masculinity, macho male culture, constructs of sexuality, gender roles, and equality are key narratives explored within his compositions. Olayombo pays homage to artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, Arja Valimaki, El Dragg Okwoju, Joshua Mensirionye, Barkley Hendricks, and Vittu Samuel in his work.

Olayombo’s solo exhibitions include Unchained: The Cotton Candy Cowboys, ADA contemporary art gallery, Accra, (2022); The Rebirth, dual exhibition, Gloria Gallery, Paris (2022); Think Pink, Go West, Institute Museum of Ghana, Accra (2023); Lotus Bloom Ranchers, Zidoun Bossuyt Gallery, Dubai (2023); The Sound of Our Souls, group exhibition, ADA contemporary art gallery x UTA artists space, Los Angeles (2023). His works are part of collections including The Hornik Collection, Los Angeles; The Dean Collection, Los Angeles, CA; Olym Collection, Brussels; Sir David Adjaye Collection; Elliot Perry Art Collection, Tennessee; Se Tinat Collection, Madrid; The Bentata Collection, Miami, FL, among others.