Talk to me about the art culture in general in Nigeria, how is it?
I would say art has always been a huge part of the Nigerian culture dating back to the era of Benin art, nok, and the likes. Coming down to the present age which is now. Nigeria is known to have produced a lot of great traditional artists who are known and celebrated worldwide not only that we are also known to have one of the highest numbers of prolific hyper-realistic artists. Then coming down to digital art, this is an area I feel has not gained its full ground in the Nigerian culture yet but that is gradually changing as social media has been a powerful tool to promote and discover great talents.
What is this #WeAreNigerianCreatives hashtag about? What’s the story behind it?
I’m very proud to say the movement was created by my brother Olaloye Bunmi who is also an artist and avid art promoter. The aim of the movement is to give all creatives a platform to showcase their craft to the world and to show the world how creative and resourceful the Nigerian youths are.
Being an artist I am sure you’re drawing and creating daily, but what do you do in your leisure time away from art?
When I am not drawing I play video games or see a movie.
I saw your black panther artwork, what did you think about Marvel’s Black Panther Movie?
I think the movie is revolutionary! And a good way to represent Africans and people of color in general. Everything about the movie is stunning and inspiring I couldn’t help but show my love for it through art.
Talk to me about this character in your Twitter profile?
Well, it was part of my daily sketch. But the character itself was inspired by love for the 90’s pop culture.
I can’t help but notice a certain style or swag to your artwork, what or who inspires the way you put your work together?
I am a huge fan of hip-hop and pop culture as a whole. I think that’s what influenced that swag.
Do you have any aspiration about getting into cartoon animation?
Of course! That is my major goal as an artist to be able to tell stories through animation. I am working towards that.
Any future projects your working on that you would like to share?
I am currently putting together a story/script for a comic book project that I intend to create before the end of this year.
source https://www.simpleprunes.com/2020/04/olaloye-bolaji-nigerian-artist-interview.html
