The curator of Nike Arts Gallery, Nigeria; Chief Nike Okundaye was recently honored by the Detroit Institute of Arts and friends of African and African American Art with the 11th Annual African Art Recognition Award. The event featured unique and artistic products designed and produced by Chief Okundaye; an iconic artist, art patron, fashion impresario and philanthropist.
Founded in 1885, Detroit Institute of Arts museum covers 658,000 square feet that includes a gallery of contemporary African American art. Each year, the institute honors individuals who have demonstrated dedication to the promotion and understanding of African American culture at the Alain L. Locke Awards program. The African Art Recognition Award is presented yearly to a distinguished scholar for his or her contributions to the study, collecting, and appreciation of African art.
Nike Arts Gallery is located in Lagos, Abuja and Osogbo, and stocked with a cache of contemporary African Art. Nike was greatly inspired by her grandmother (a leader among cloth weavers at that time) who she lived with after losing her Mum at the age of six. A product of the famous Osogbo Art Movement, Nike is today a world acclaimed artist and textile designer. She brings vivid imagination as well as a wealth of history and tradition into the production of adire. Her works are celebrated in major capitals of the world, with her designs exhibited in countries like the USA, Belgium, Germany, Japan and Italy, among others.
by Tosan Aduayi for Trendy Africa Magazine. Photo credit: Folake Ayo-Vaughan
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