Before the grande finale was declared opened by Ovie Omatsola, the curator of the show who also doubles as the exhibition director of Thought Pyramid Art Centre Lagos, guests were seen frolicking with the 30 newfangled artworks by the 10 finalists: Adenitan Daniel, Adeyemi Olalekan, Aladejare Ayodeji, Solomon Akinnire, Ibrahim Falope, Ademola Ojo, Obeka Simon Udoh, Boluwatife Victoria Lawal, Jiboku Segun Adebayo, and Chidinma Nwafor.
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The gallery hall of the Thought Pyramid Art Centre was filled with the fresh artistic energy of its ten finalists and the COVID-19 protected audience who came out to witness history as it unfolded again yesterday, March 27th, 2022.
For a virtual viewing of the exhibition, click https://ond.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/exhibitionA/index.htm
The originality, honesty, and intellectual investment of the ten finalists in their submissions can be attested to right from the first day opening of the grande finale as the red tag labels are visible on some of the stickers describing the artworks. Without gainsaying, most of the phenomenal submissions could be sold out before the end of the show which remains open to the public until April 19th, 2022.
The show was declared open by Ovie Omatsola. In his welcome remarks, he notes that “ Next of Kin is more than a household name but a vision that, through effective courses of action, plans the future of visual arts in Nigeria and Africa.”
Recognizing the effort of the juries consisting of Sam Ovraiti, Fidelis Odogwu, Tajudeen Sowole, and Steve Ekpenisi- Ovie Omtsola insists that through their enviable discernment abilities “ Next of Kin has been able to set the bar for futuristic arts and a visual model that defines good quality and high aesthetic standard.” Closing his address, Ovie Omatsola added, “no wonder the works of Next of Kin’s previous winners and finalists are excelling beyond expected imaginations’ ‘.
To the days’ business, Sam Ovraiti stepped in to announce the prize winner of the Next of Kin Series 4 winner. After more than 4 months of waiting for the special moment in time, Adeyemi Olalekan was declared the main prize winner with a #500,000 reward investment.
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Adeyemi Olalekan, Next of Series 4 main prize winner.
Asked how he felt, Adeyemi Olalekan was left speechless but managed to barely breathe out a few words of gratitude. The artworks of the Fine and Applied Arts graduate from the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Ogbomoso on exhibition are a product of eventful material research that documents his perspectives on ethnic and social associations.
With the engrossing composition of his subjects using real-looking unrealistic cracks or their presentation in a manner that seems like the skin of the characters is peeling, the Society of Nigerian Artists member enraptured the sights of all of the guests in his section at the grande finale.
Obeka Simon Udoh 
Solomon Akinnire 
Jiboku Segun Adebayo 
Boluwatife Victoria Lawal 
artwork by Solon Akinnire 
Falope Ibrahim Abiodun 
Chidinma Nwafor 
Aladejare Ayodeji 
Adenitan Daniel 
Ademola Ojo
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“But the future does not only look bright for Adeyemi Olalekan. The remaining nine finalists, like Michael Igwe from the Next of Kin 2020 series won by Christian Allison, can rest assured of excelling beyond the expected level on the condition that they continue to invest (more than) the efforts that led to their selection from over 400 entries across the country for this Next of Kin Fourth Series”, Ovie Omatsola stated.
Click here https://online.pubhtml5.com/lxru/extr/#p=10 to view the Next of Kin Series 4 catalog.
Unlike the previous series in 2019 when second and third runners-up were chosen and awarded cash while the 1st prize winner was rewarded with four weeks of residency, Next of Kin Series 4 continued a winner-takes-all approach that was established from the recent series 3 in 2020.
Adeyemi Olalekan with one of his artworks on display at Next of Kin Series 4 grande finale
Therefore, Adeyemi Olalekan #500,00 represents the total sum Thought Pyramid Art Centre would spend on his one-month artist residency in May 2022 and scheduled solo exhibition in September 2022. Although not enough it seems, the prize money is heavy when compared to the prize money splits that occurred in 2019 and the series before.
Talking about the reason for the gallery’s decision to award only the prizeman, “ we decided on a main prize reward system to make this art competition and exhibition more competitive, ” Ovie Omatsola explained. “ The remaining artists will apparently be invested in through the purchase of their artworks as the gallery ensures to buy the art from the participating finalists and all things being equal, they will be considered for possible project collaborations and features subsequent to today”, he rejoined.
He went on to insist that the gallery wanted the rewarding investment for the winner to be satisfying and “ while words can not measure how grateful we are to our sponsors Trustbanc that spearheaded the reward financing for Adeyemi Olalekan and Nigeria Machine Tools that continues to be our backbone on this project, especially in a time like this, we can do more for not just the finalists but every emerging artist who submit for entry into Next of Kin if there are more willing individuals and groups who can tap into this life-changing vision”, he affirmed
The grand finale was graced by some of the biggest names in the Nigerian visual art scene such as Yusuf Durodola, Bob Nosa Uwagboe, Abu Momogima, Abinoro Collins, Steve Ekpenisi, Fidelis Odowgu, Sam Ovraiti amongst others.
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Not just the reward strategy has changed, but the entire execution for Next of Kin Series 4 has been thought up differently. Even though due to certain challenges brought up by the pandemic but faced head-on in the successful hosting of Next of Kin Series 4, the organizers have had to postpone proposed new features for the Next of Kin Series 4 such as ART COLLABORATION and STUDIO MENTORSHIP with a master artist to the upcoming series.
In the words of the Founder and Artistic Director of Thought Pyramid Art Centre, “ the annual juried Next of Kin exhibition and competition that has been active since 2018 is one project that is not resting on the achievements and laurels of Nigerian master artists but is committed to consistently rooting out the next Future Master of Arts in Nigeria. An obligation we believe is a pivotal and priceless part of sustaining the Nigerian Art Industry beyond today.”
Clearly, the Next of Kin Art Competition and Exhibition has more innovative approaches to elevating the status and reach of Nigerian visual arts. All of which are in store for artists, stakeholders, and art enthusiasts to be revealed with time. As the celebration is on for the newest future master of arts in Nigeria, Adeyemi Olalekan, we are eager to see what the future holds for him.