By: Omowumi Afolabi

It was a curious encounter for me, as I went through the white passage ways adorned with magnificent canvases. They told stories that reached for the deepest parts of the mind, igniting dormant memories of beautiful experiences and the nostalgia of nearly forgotten eras. It was a curious encounter for me, as I went through the white passageways adorned with magnificent canvases. They told stories that reached for the deepest parts of the mind, igniting dormant memories of beautiful experiences and the nostalgia of nearly forgotten eras. I could almost hear the voice of the bread hawker calling out to her customers as she walks through the mechanic shop, the loud shouts of the bus driver as he yells at the bus conductor to do his job or not get paid for the day. I could almost smell the Breeze from the Lagos lagoon mixed with the exhaust fumes from the yellow busses, and I could feel the tension in the constant conflict between law and survival

There was a recognizable theme connecting the pieces that seized my attention until the whispers of all those beautiful stories became crystal clear. It all left me very curious and I set out with a goal to find out where the inspiration for this beautiful display came from and upon doing a little digging, I realized that the up from nothing exhibition was not just a one off showcase of the city of Lagos. In fact, about 95% of all the works of art associated with the Femi.the.god brand were notoriously related to the city of Lagos. I was intrigued by this individual and I wanted to know the origin of this remarkable Lagos influence.I caught up with Femi.the.god at a restaurant in Surulere and we had a conversation when we were done with our plates of Jollof rice. I unloaded all of the questions that had been keeping me up at night and Femi was more than happy to answer all of them to degrees  that gave a great deal of insight to the inner workings of his creative genius. The first thing that struck me was your name. I imagine it must be controversial. Tell me, why Femi.the.god?

“Yes I agree, it is a bit odd and controversial around here, but Femi.the.god is not just a name; it’s a reminder of who I am. It’s like a personal alarm clock that awakens me daily to realize how strong I am as an individual and the amazing things that I am capable of. The story behind it is one that can inspire people who battle demons that may make them feel less than they truly are and prevent them from actualizing their potential.”

Asking what inspires your work might be redundant at this point so I guess the more appropriate question would be; why Lagos?

“It actually would be okay to ask what inspires my art, because it’s a little deeper than Lagos. I think it’s just the way that I am wired to really see the little things around me. And this includes nature people and their mannerisms. The more hidden and uncelebrated they are the more curious I am of them and the more I feel the need to tell their story. However Lagos is a beautiful place. A lot of people who live here see it as chaotic but I see it as rich. When I go through the streets now, I remember walking through them at some point in my life when things seemed quite bleak. It always gave me what I needed to survive and I did. Because of this I have an unbreakable relationship with it, it doesn’t exactly inspire me; it’s just a part of me.”

One of your works is called up from nothing. Did you name the piece to express anything political, and do you worry that the name reflects negatively on the place that you love?

“The interesting thing is, I hardly think about politics when I create. I just focus on the lives of the people whose stories I want to tell. For up from nothing, the focus was on the strength and tenacity that people go through life and survive with. The system isn’t news, there is always some decay and corruption eating into a fabric of society somewhere. But regardless of this certain people rise above it all. It’s just about the mind-set that enables you to ignore the negativity around you, and make your life – even to the point where you can lend a hand to the people around you. That’s what I celebrate with up from nothing.”

What is creativity to you, and what do you consider to be creative?

“Creativity to me is a survival skill. It has nothing to do with drawing or singing or writing. It’s just the ability for a human being to think its way through certain situations or through life in general. Of course this ability varies from person to person; we are all unique in our own way but it should not be confused with skills that can be learned. What I consider to be creative are truly creative ideas. And I think the best ideas simply come to us. You just have to keep a mind-set and a stream of thought that makes you able to recognize them when they come. This is why I consider myself a creative conduit rather than a creative.”

You run a few businesses here in Lagos and you are a bit of an entrepreneur, tell me about that and tell me if your work as a business man is separate from your work as an artist.

“Well my businesses started from my art. I just wanted to put stencilled drawings of Lagos and Fela and the Festac 77 mask on t-shirts when I was a kid. I continued to make them for myself and for others until I realized that it was something people would be willing to pay for and that’s when I started thinking about it differently. So my work as a business man and my work as an artist aren’t very separate. I run an apparel branding agency that does print on demand fulfilment and garment manufacture, a cut and sew brand, and I’m soon to launch urban fashion brand that will be called ijapa.”

What mediums do you use and what’s your style?

“I employ a variety of mediums. Most of which are very novel and experimental. I like to pull ideas and techniques from all the other aspects of my work in fashion and a few other areas, to create a little difference. I started out working with acrylic and cutting stencils and then I sort of graduated to digital illustrations. So now I try to merge the traditional methods of paint and canvas with the modern digital methods and technologies to create a hybrid of sorts. In terms of style, I like to keep it simple, but some pieces call for a more complex approach. I’ll do just as much as is required to communicate the idea and that’s it.”

Would you say the life of an artist is lonely? And if you think so, what do you do to counteract it?

“Being an artist isn’t really about the work, it’s about the thoughts and ideas that you have as an individual. These ideas and thoughts are usually not very popular so the chances of loneliness for an artist are very high. And it doesn’t matter how many people are around you, you could be in a room full of people and still be lonely. Also if you are into your work as you should be, you will probably have the guilt of all the things that are undone following you around so you won’t really have time for people. And lastly if you are like me, you are wildly introverted. There is no way to counteract it really. You just have to understand that you are going to die someday and value your interactions with the people around you more than you value your creations. Express yourself but don’t shove your ideas down people’s throats. Try to reach out to people as much as you can and have fun with the people you are comfortable with.”

What do you dislike about the art world?

“I really dislike classism. You shouldn’t have to look a certain way, talk a certain way, have certain backgrounds, have been mentored by a certain group of people, and use certain mediums and so on, to be called an artist.”

Nfts?

“I haven’t started doing Nfts yet, but I’m very open to it. I think the whole idea is amazing and the future applications are infinite, but I’m generally more focused on just making the art right now.”

What is your dream project?

“Just making art is a dream for me. One thing that I am looking forward to though is my work with ijapa. It is a fashion and lifestyle brand that’s based on art and culture, backed by a philosophy that we are here to serve and preserve. I have exciting plans for it and I would like to share it with the rest of the world.”

Name three artists you’d like to be compared to.

“Pablo Picasso, Kanye West, Virgil Abloh.”

What one idea that you would like to impart people who are starting with?

“I want people to understand that art isn’t about pretty pictures. It’s about the desire to express the things that are within the soul, and acting upon those desires regardless of you skill level. Social media is a beautiful place but it’s also kind of terrible because you will see things that have been classified to be the standard, and if what you can deliver doesn’t match up to that, it’s easy to give up entirely. And that would be a shame. So many great ideas would just never see the light of day because of this indirect discouragement. People need to understand that just like any other mode of communication, the idea is what matters.”

Overall, what would you say your philosophy is towards life and how does your art represent that?

“I like to live with the understanding that life is fleeting and nothing really matters as much as we have been told that they do. It helps me appreciate the little things and enables me to Love others and be as just as I can. My art may or may not represent that, but my art represents me and I think that is enough.”

It is safe to say that just like the cities of new york, Paris and London, the city of Lagos is one of the many cities in the world that are famous for their cultural richness, diversity and contribution to global economic growth. These cities have a life of their own where it is impossible to exhaust the stories to be told about them. Femi.the.god has immersed himself in the city of Lagos and seems determined to cement his name as one of the foremost narrators of the story that is Lagos.

Explore more of femi.the.god:

www.femithegod.art twitter @femithegod instagram @femi.the.god