Olu Omishore: My Crafts Celebrate African Artistic History
Olokun Home, a place of expression, comfort and style is the brainchild of Olu Omishore, a multidisciplinary artist and designer based in the UK. Olokun Home is driven and inspired by Olokun Heads also known as Ife-Heads. It was founded to expand and promote African/Yoruba culture and art in homes.
The Heads are one of the most naturalistic and realistic sculptures that were sculpted by Yoruba people in South West Nigeria between the 11th and 15th centuries. All the sculptures produced during this period exemplify African civilisation at the height of its power. In this interview with MARY NNAH, Omishore explains that the Olokun Heads symbolise the beautiful African royalties and culture, which are powerful expressions of serenity born of divine authority
Olokun is supposed to be a Yoruba deity worshiped by a particular set of people. How does this relate to your crafts?
I am a multidisciplinary artist based in the UK and the owner of olokunhome and olokunstore. I am not a worshiper of the Olokun deity, but I am proud of my culture and the Yoruba artisan contribution towards African art and world history.
My craft and products were indeed inspired by Olokun’s head, but the heads were also known as ife-head, which are a series of naturalistic sculptures produced around the 11th century to commemorate the Onis and ile-ife dynasties.
What was the attraction for you in the first place? In other words, what inspires your kind of crafts – Olokun heads?
Olokun heads/if-heads were produced long before colonisation, and the level of skill set and the technicality involved in creating naturalistic sculptures around the 11th century are my first attraction.
Olokun head/ife-head renewed my passion for African History and Art and the importance of retelling our own story without colonial misconception and distortion.
People who are of other religions like Christianity regard such as idols. How do you convince people to buy your craft as aesthetic items for their homes, putting such belief into consideration?
I grew up in a Pentecostal household, and I also had to challenge the age-long misconceptions about African history and spirituality from being bad and evil.
The truth is that there’s nothing evil about any aspect of Yoruba culture and religion and my crafts purpose remains to celebrate our artistic history by infusing African art into our interior architecture.
Who is your target audience?
I believe we all have a role in promoting African history and culture against western distortion and my target audience is everyone.
Tell us about your journey into the art world. How did it start?
I have always seen myself as a creative person, and drawing was one of my hobbies growing up in Nigeria, but it was after I moved to the UK that I developed and pursued more interest in Art.
I have a master degree in computer-generated imagery, and I worked as a digital artist for many years but my inspiration for Olokun Home and olokunstore began after seeing the magnificent Olokun Head at British Museum five years ago.
What will you describe as the most remarkable moment on this journey?
Nothing beats seeing one’s creation and art coming to life. However, the most remarkable moment is teaching my children about African art history and the role Yoruba artisan plays in his development.
Were there moments you were harassed or embarrassed because of your specialised crafts?
I have never been harassed or embarrassed about my craft. On the contrary, my craft has provided me with the opportunity to educate others about the role of African art in world art history.
Where do you hope to see yourself in a few years?
The goal is to promote African art history through Olokunhome and Olokunstore products, and I hope in the next few years my crafts will be available to sell in more countries.
How have people regarded your crafts globally?
The support has been unbelievable, and I’m highly grateful to everyone who continued to patronise my olokunhome and Olokunstore products.
