At Jelosimi Art Centre, Artist Tells Tales of Nature

Khalid Balogun’s debut solo exhibition is beyond a mere reflection of nature’s beauty and serenity but a nexus to his roots, says Yinka Olatunbosun

Khalid Balogun, a floral landscape artist and poet whose style goes in line with his mantra ‘creating sceneries with voices’ has made his way to the art scene with his first solo show. Hosted by Jelosimi Art Centre, Lagos, the show titled “Nature’s Muse’’ had its opening on December 17 with a warm reception by the Lagos audience. Largely influenced by his childhood encounter with nature, the 20-year old is a self-trained artist. He unearthed his path to self-discovery at a recent encounter with him on January 2.

“I have always loved drawing since I was in primary school,’’ he began. “I was born in Delta state and raised there till I was eight years old. I moved to Lagos after that.”

The memory of lagoon in mind was as active as the water tides so he captures elements of nature such as sun, waterfalls, trees, rocks and more in his works.

A product of Crescent Schools, Lagos, Balogun had his first group exhibition in 2019 at the University of Lagos. With an understanding of the value of tutelage, he enrolled for a workshop at the National Gallery of Art also watched some YouTube videos.

“My art comes from a deep evergreen point within me that tends to express nature in her most natural state. With the help of the hue of green and its analogous neighbours on my colour palette, I start a process which I call “Creating Scenery with Voices.’’ I am constantly visiting lakes as the core elements of my style can be found there, thereby replenishing my inspiration. I delved into nature painting because I love calmness and serenity. But sometimes, my art can be a form of protest and a tool for social change. I put my anger in the works,’’ he explained.

Through the nine-piece series titled ‘Tales of the Sun,’ Balogun explores the important of the sunlight in the ecosystem.

“I used this series to pour out the whole idea of photosynthesis. You can see that throughout the series, the yellow colour is used. I call the sun the mother of nature because that is where the natural process starts.”

Another frequent image in some of his charcoal works is that of a fisherman. Balogun would later reveal that his grandparents are from Epe, a Lagos community known for fishing. Through the ‘Apeja Series’ he recounts the story of his grandfather’s fishing exploits, showing different times of the day.

Curated by Matthew Oyedele, the show allows Balogun to peel the layers of his creativity. For instance, the series tagged ‘Nature’s Aesthetics’ is inspired by one of his poems that pays home to mother nature and romanticizes with the visual interplay of water on rocks.

“At the opening, we had a sound installation of the waterfall because the essence was for us to create a calm and relaxing atmosphere with the works. When you spend some time with nature, you will feel energized. That’s what we tried to recreate nature at the space.

The vision we had was to allow him to tell a story that is unique to him; a story that he can own. That is originality,’’ the curator revealed.