Aina Onabolu.
Have you ever wondered who the father of modern art in Nigeria was?
Well your answer would be Aina Onabolu born in 1882 in Ijebu-Ode.
He was a pioneering modern art teacher and painter, He played a very important role in the introduction of arts into the curriculum of secondary schools in Nigeria.
This icon started painting at an early age of twelve and his inspiration was from the cheap reproduced western arts prominent in many Nigerian magazines and religious books.
By the age of 32 he was already quite popular as a knowledgeable and skilled artist and was able to exhibit his works.
He went on to complete his studies with a diploma in fine arts and a teacher’s certificate from St. John Woods College, London in 1922.
Aina’s major artworks were portraits. And one of the most outstanding of them is his portrait of Mrs. Spencer Savage in 1906.
This portrait is sometimes regarded as one one of the outstanding works of art that used a western and modern style and technique.
Most of his portraits are held at the National Gallery of Modern Arts, Lagos.
However Aina was not limited to only portraiture as he was also an established craftsman.
He passed on in 1963.
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