I haven’t written here for a long time. It feels good to be forging a routine/rooting again. I know.  No excuses but I’ve been busy with my last experiment detailed in “Goal: Define work terms on the female principle”. The culmination of which is set for tomorrow, Monday 14th Jan when I make a grand announcement to my boss and outline my plans for 2013. In the time being, it is apt to start this year’s post not just with a ‘Happy New Year’ people and a ‘Thank you’ for encouraging me by reading me, commenting and sharing my posts throughout an erratic 2012 and promises to be more strict with myself in 2013; but to continue on the theme pervading my waking hours with this painting.

So here is introducing a Nigerian painter, Komi Olaf, currently based in Toronto that I stumbled upon on my cousin’s facebook page and whose work I have sat with for many hours over the course of the 1 week since my discovery and now writing this blog post.

Komi Olaf is a renaissance man. A Painter, Photographer, Spoken Wordsmith. His website speaks for itself and is filled with many wonders I am still exploring and falling in love with.

I’m not an art critic, nor will I attempt to even pontificate in arty terms here. I just want you to experience the works and tell me what it provokes in you, what you thought of whilst taking it all in. For me, here is a list of the paintings that have ‘moved’ me and I want on my wall:

2013 – ‘Self Portrait for my Future Daughter or The Floating Dreamer’

2012 – ‘Nubian Empress #3’

‘Makoko Cut Out’

‘Abavusi Bungoma’

‘Ubuntu’  (No words. Just Love)

‘Igwe’ (No words. More Love)

2011 – ‘Going In’

2010 – ‘Angela Davis : ‘Radical simply means grasping things at the root’

2008 – ‘Lost’

‘Festac’

I promised myself not to make any sweeping statements and this isn’t one: 2013 is going to be a year to Go and Discover, to Remember and Remake, To follow and Nourish your ‘Ori’:  “Ori la ba bo, a ba f’orisa sile” meaning ‘It is the inner self we ought to venerate, and let divinity be.’