ToKillaMockingBird
Artist: Moyo Okediji
Title: ToKillaMockingBird
Medium: Acrylic on canvas
Date: 2018
Artist: Moyo Okediji
Title: ToKillaMockingBird
Medium: Acrylic on canvas
Date: 2018
Have you heard the news?
Nigeria is rated more corrupt now than ever before.
Nigeria ranks in the bottom 40 nations in the world.
In West Africa, only Guinea is rated worse than Nigeria.
And Botswana is rated best in Africa.
Olodumare laughed when the Nigerian contingents
Stood up to present their case
before the throne of the Most High.
Olodumare said, “Active and passive
are equal and opposite
to effect the law of balance.
In the beginning
I created the most talented people
In a landscape mischievously named Nigeria.
I went into my garage and found a harvest of forgotten canvases waiting for me.
This corona break has given me some time to look at what I already have produced.
This is the last painting I did in 1992, just before leaving Nigeria.
You will notice that it is made from gouache.
Gbogbo igi kọ́ lejò ń gùn (Not all trees can be scaled by the snake)
Gbogbo omi kọ́ lẹdun ń mu (The colobus monkey doesn’t drink all types of water)
Àyàfi wèrè, àyàfi dìgbòlugi (Only the insane, only the raving lunatic)
Like the comb (ÒÒYÀ)moves smoothly through the knotty hair
may you move without wahala through your days.
Ooya comes from yà, meaning to open up.
Artist: Moyo Okediji
Title: Orò Ilé
Medium: terracotta
Date: 2010