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Arts & Life
August 31, 2025 by Our Reporter
- By Boluwatife Owolabi
Bunmi Babatunde is an artist who has done lots of artworks one of which is a bronze sculpture representation he called Oni Gele. From the interview I had with him, he mentioned that the artwork is a sterilized wok of a Yoruba woman with her hair tie which led to the name Oni Gele.
He said the artwork is a story of the social custom of our women because gele is a major part of the Yorubas’ mode of dressing as it is also a representation of the culture and tradition of the land. He further explains that the artwork is sterilized because no neck of a human being can be like this and that he has given his own meaning, signature, and the way he wants then story to be told to his artwork.
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He said women use gele for ceremonies like birthday parties, burial ceremony, naming ceremony, marriage, chieftaincy (Iyalode) and many more. Gele has a significant role in different way they are made. Some mothers will tie their gele in a way that will attract the attention of the people around and that is the way the culture and tradition continue to grow in the form of the attires and the head tie.
The colour used in producing the sculpture is bluish black and the colour is giving the aso oke, adire and more that people wear. They do not have one colour and most times when we see gele they have either two or more colour.
Babatunde is also the chairman of the Universal Studios of Art (USA). He is one of the most known sculptors in Nigeria. His ability in organizing and running USA over the years, has made him a good administrator, father and artist. He loves mentoring young artists as well. USA is located within the premises of the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos.
English (US)