Lecture Notes: Yinka Shonibare

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 Yinka Shonibare is a British-Nigerian artist working with both cultures of Nigerian (African) and British contexts. He expresses his personal experiences as a British-Nigerian in different mediums; he is not afraid to explore with 2D and 3D mediums such as photography, sculptures and films. Somewhat similarly to Grayson Perry, he takes a light approach to serious issues, making it numerous and approachable, and has won several awards for his efforts. 


Diary of a Victorian Dandy: 19.00 hours, (1998)

 He was initially challenged by his tutor when he was in college according to the Bloomberg interview in our lecture; his artworks did not carry the ‘authenticity’ of African art according to his teacher. While he had attempted to work with traditional African materials, he had not connected to it especially when the tribal contexts did not fit well with modern African setting. He had found his modern inspiration in Dutch wax fabrics, a type of textile often used in African clothings and can be easily sold in African vendors. He has used this textile to integrate his culture into aristocratic British culture, saying he is ‘ethnicising aristocratic society’, taking scenes which looks like still shots from dramas or movies. 


Butterfly Kid (Boy) IV, 2019

 One major challenge that he had to overcome in his life was a sickness which caused him to be paralysed. However he had taken to this new disability quite well, adjusting to his new lifestyle to express himself in new ways and new methods. His works carry that sense of positivity while still have some sense of dread considering the motif of his themes. With his crew and his studio, he continues to work and give opportunities to aspiring young artists.

Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle, 2010


References:
Shonibare, Y. (1998) ‘Diary of a Victorian Dandy: 19.00 hours’, V&A Museum [Online Image] Available at: https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1263376/diary-of-a-victorian-dandy-photograph-yinka-shonibare/ (Accessed: 28 January 2023)

Shonibare, Y. (2010) ‘Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle’, Royal Museums Greenwich [Online Image] Available at: https://www.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/rmgc-object-563014/ (Accessed: 28 January 2023)

Shonibare, Y. (2019) ‘Butterfly Kid (Boy) IV’, Artsy [Online Image] Available at: https://www.artsy.net/artwork/yinka-shonibare-butterfly-kid-boy-iv-1 (Accessed: 28 January 2023)



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