Ekiti State Governor, Mr Abiodun Oyebanji, will host art lovers, scholars, historians and corporate Nigeria on Sunday, October 27, at Eko Hotel, Lagos, at a fundraiser for the Olowe of Ise Art Museum.
The late Olowe Ajalemo, better known as Olowe of Ise (circa 1875–1937), was a renowned master carver celebrated in Africa and globally. Born in Ise Ekiti, Ekiti State, Olowe’s work was deeply rooted in the traditional Yoruba aesthetic. He made exciting sculptures, including door panels, veranda posts, royal thrones, and other ceremonial objects.
Olowe exhibited an extraordinary ability to manipulate wood into visually striking and conceptually profound forms from an early age and became much sought after by royal patrons across Yorubaland.
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The master carver who has a work, ‘Ekiti Veranda Post’ in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, made significant contributions to African and global arts. By the mid-20th century, his work began to receive international recognition.
Apart from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, his sculptures are also in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC and the British Museum in London.
The fundraiser featuring Governor Oyebanji and other eminences is part of efforts to immortalise the great artist further, increase access to his works, and deepen people’s understanding of his masterpieces.
At a media briefing on Sunday, October 20, at the Nike Art Gallery in Lagos, the Board of Trustees, Olowe of Ise Arts Foundation, led by its Chair, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, disclosed that the Olowe of Ise Museum will be built on the grounds of Olowe’s original workshop in Ise Ekiti. It will give visitors an immersive experience of the environment in which he created his masterpieces.
Others at the briefing were the Director-General of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM), Olugbile Holloway, Dr Alex Nwuba, Dr Gbemisola Akinwole, Prince Ade Ajayi, a descendant of Olowe of Ise, Arc. Olayiwola Olayinka, Abiola Adelana, comedian Ali Baba, and Special Adviser on Tourism to the Lagos State Governor, Idris Aregbe.
Ojudu explained, “Through the museum’s exhibitions and educational programs, it will offer a deeper understanding of Yoruba art and culture, as well as the profound impact that Olowe’s work has had on the global art world.”
The Foundation’s Chair, who described the master carver as an enduring genius, hailed him as “a visionary who used his art to bridge the gap between the earthly and the divine, the traditional and the innovative, the local and the global. While deeply rooted in Yoruba traditions, his works speak to universal themes of power, spirituality, and the human condition.”
He said the project would require significant financial resources, hence the collaboration of the Ekiti State’s government with individuals and corporate bodies for the comprehensive fundraising campaign.
NCMM DG Holloway said a museum’s role is not just to preserve artefacts but to maintain them in a way that the stories can be told so that subsequent generations can learn about them.
He said he is passionate about the project, given his role as DG. “If we can’t preserve our heritage, what can we preserve?”
