By Osa Mbonu-Amadi

Dotun Popoola’s exhibition titled “Reclaimed Beauty” opened Tuesday December 10 at the Heydar Aliyev Center in Azerbaijan, a strong, modern country attached to its past while advancing confidently into the future. 

“Reclaimed Beauty”, the 7th personal exhibition of Dotun Popoola, coincided with the “Green World Solidarity Year” in Azerbaijan. The theme of the exhibition is in line with the themes of the environment and climate change.

Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, Leyla Aliyeva, attended the! exhibition, while the opening ceremony was attended by the director of the Heydar Aliyev Center, Anar Alakbarov.

Dr. Michael Olusegun Fajuyigbe, in his literature titled “Dotun Popoola: The Aesthetic Explorer and the Quest for Ecological Sustainability” describes Dotun Popoola as “a synergetic metal sculptor with hyper realistic ornamented forms that combines painting and sculpture techniques.”

“Popoola’s synergetic approach to art making, the cultural and symbolic depth of his themes, his engagement with traditional styles and techniques, and environmental awareness regarding waste management through art, constitute the key aspects of his aesthetic exploration,” Fajuyigbe writes

He describes the artist as a creative explorer constantly seeking to identify, categorize, analyse, interpret and investigate the humongous metal scraps and discards that litter his immediate social environment. “Over the years, he has reimagined and repurposed discards, particularly, non-degradable junks and transform them into aesthetic objects that provide pleasure to the eyes and challenge the intellect.”

Dotun Popoola graduated from Obafemi Awolowo University, with BA and MFA degrees, specializing in sculpture and painting in 2008 and 2014 respectively. His works embodies a visual culture that centres on aesthetic exploration of human activities, culture, history and global issues on environmental awareness and sustainability. About 30 works by Dotun Popoola will be exhibited until October 2025.