Ara Deinde
Conversations with self
Artist Statement
With oil, acrylic, oil pastel, carton and paper as his basic materials, Ara Deinde's paintings, drawings and sculptures reflect on what he refers to as Mental Migration: the idea of reconstructing physical and mental spaces to suit the identity and needs of his subjects. He turns himself and other people he's familiar with into reflective portraits set in dreamscapes brewing with metaphors to this end.
Ara's abstract ruminations materialize into paintings and carton sculptures to the same end as his paintings and drawings. He invites the viewer to contemplate the boundaries between real and imagined experiences, especially those of his fellow Africans home and abroad.
Ara's abstract ruminations materialize into paintings and carton sculptures to the same end as his paintings and drawings. He invites the viewer to contemplate the boundaries between real and imagined experiences, especially those of his fellow Africans home and abroad.
Ara Deinde is a visual artist living and working in Ibadan, Nigeria. He uses a diverse range of mediums to reflect on themes of identity, migration, memory and fantasy. His works have been exhibited in Nigeria, UK and USA, and he has taken on several notable painting and mural commissions. He has also been featured on several publications home and abroad, including Ake Review for African art and Literature and Insight Magazine by Fokus, New York. Ara cites Toyin Odutola Ojih, Sam Gilliam, Frida Kahlo, Pablo Picasso and Yayoi Kusama among the influences on his work.
