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Those who were privileged to visit Temple Muse, Victoria Island, Lagos in October 2020 to see the enthralling works of Deborah Segun have since been hooked to creative pieces of the fast-rising painter.
Tagged ‘Being Free’, the exhibition celebrated the diverse bodies of women through shape and color, portraiture and narrative, creating an important counter-point to society’s patriarchal notions of an “ideal woman”.
Her technique is unique. She skillfully combines abstraction and figuration and that was evident in the way she created voluptuous figures in varied graceful poses, thus celebrating the female form in a refreshing and lyrical style.
Being Free, her solo exhibition, at the pandemic year 2020, is just a tip on the iceberg considering the many breathtaking works, growing number of group and solo exhibitions, impressive performance at auction houses at home and abroad, and the many accolades that trail their great feats.
Also considering that she debuted in the art market just in 2017 and has achieved great feats for herself within a short period is enough to trigger interest.
She is definitely among African female artists on the rise, as well as one artist to look out for this year.
Born in 1994, the multidisciplinary artist, who is based in Lagos, obtained a degree in Fashion Design at the Polimoda Institute of Fashion Design and Marketing in Florence, Italy in 2017. During her studies in fashion, she translated her own art production into clothing, creating conceptual and sculptural wearable pieces.
Her works are mainly figurative with a focus on portraiture unique, while their uniqueness is offering a mix between cubism and abstraction.
Also, she takes a playful and purist approach to her work by focusing on form rather than detail, through the use of different artistic mediums.
Moreover, the inspiration behind her works stem from her personal and shared experiences as a woman, as well as observations of any given space she occupies at a time. She tries to capture these experiences through her unique and experimental use of colours and shapes, which she believes creates a sense of simplicity and calmness out of a rather complex scenario. She exaggerates the figures or displaces them, as she believes it is her own way of confronting how she sees things. She also likes to isolate shapes from the subjects/objects and put them together to create a new composition.
As Sandra Mbanefo Obiago, founder/artistic director, SMO Contemporary Art, rightly observed, since graduating in 2017, Segun has embraced a sculptural approach to fashion by creating wearable works, which used the body as a canvas adorned with fabric and conceptual shapes, textures and colors, sharing powerful narratives influenced by pop culture while firmly rooted in her African heritage. “This was the beginning of her departure from mainstream fashion, taking bold steps to explore portraiture from a place of body sensitivity, beckoning her audience to step into a world of stylized and simplified imagery reflecting a more truthful, vulnerable essence, leading us into an uber-consciousness of how our body shape and size affects the mind in a myriad of ways”, the artistic director said.
Also describing her works, Charlotte Langhorst PhD, an art historian, said, “Through her employment of energetic color palettes and a fearless attitude towards style and expression the oeuvre of Segun represents an expansive force which gives life to the things around us. We feel the physique of her women before we can name any kind of anatomy, or cultural gaze”.
Furthering the accolades from some art stakeholders on her work and style, she is out to create her own standards and canvas.
In her paintings, a keen observer will easily notice and appreciate the fact that her subjects maintain a steady and relaxed gaze, which represents a shift in focus from typical male-centered standards of beauty.
Truly, Segun’s work is a step towards claiming a new sense of freedom through art.
These are among the reasons you should follow the painter this year as she is set to excite you with her creative ingenuity.
Her works are accessible at SMO Contemporary Art, Lagos. She awaits your visit, call and likes on social media.
Cheers!
