An ‘Emotional Landscape’

 

 “We are all colours that are constantly fluctuating, we change every day, we change every minute, and it was a wonderful thing to think about in terms of why these paintings feel so different to me all the time, because I am constantly changing, and the colours I am experiencing are constantly changing.”
— Jadé Fadojutimi

 

Born in 1993 in London, United Kingdom, Jadé Fadojutimi has been recognized as one of the most vibrant and innovative painters of her time, with a maturity in her artistic language that belies her young age. She often explores themes related to identity, self-discovery, and the human connection to nature. Fadojutimi's work is characterized by its large scale, energetic brushwork, and rich colour palette, featuring a mix of abstract forms and recognizable elements, such as flowers and landscapes, which serve as metaphors for personal experiences and emotions.

 

In the present work Debris is welcome in this stream of thought, one can recognize a heart shape with a music note in the centre. This is perhaps inspired by her love of playing Japanese anime and gaming soundtracks while working in the studio. Your Lie in April  and Ori and the Blind Forest are constantly on repeat. Fadojutimi recalls that she has been fascinated with anime since a young age, and, in 2016, a Kyoto residency working with the Japanese subcultures and artist Makiko Kudo truly set off her career. She still sometimes visits Japan several times a year, and, for Fadojutimi, anime reminds her how ‘every moment in our life can be dramatic.’ ⁱ As a result, her canvas reflects her internal and external worlds, serving as a visual representation of her emotional and experiential landscape. Fused with primary colours of red, blue, and yellow, Debris is welcome in this stream of thought is an exuberant piece that radiates an optimistic and liberating energy.

 

 Artist Talk for The Numbing Vibrancy of Characters in Play

Video courtesy of the PEER Gallery

 

Debris is welcome in this stream of thought was featured in the exhibition Infinite Games... 2 at Capitain Petzel gallery in Berlin in 2021. Fadojutimi’s goal is to create paintings for ‘deep emotion, not deep description’ ⁱⁱ. Her work invites viewers to engage with the complexity of identity and the fluidity of emotion, offering a deeply personal yet universally relatable exploration of the human condition.

 

 

Intuition and Spontaneity

 

 “Art is not an explanation: it’s a shot of energy, a flash of colour; a shimmer, a reaction, a line thrown out to see who might pick it up.”
— Jennifer Higgie

 

Jadé Fadojutimi is known for her ability to express a sense of instinctive movement and spontaneity in her work, creating an unstrained and gushing visual experience for the viewer. Fadojutimi works intuitively; the artist almost never decides what colours to use, how to mix them, or envisions the painting beforehand. Fadojutimi has learned to allow the painting to take her on a journey and manifest itself, giving up her own will. To fully let the materials, colours and lines move freely and speak for themselves on the canvas, Fadojutimi started to adopt a new painting technique using oil sticks in recent years. Oil stick is a medium which accommodates and supports both speed and spontaneity for a dynamic composition. In Debris is welcome in this stream of thought, Fadojutimi enables the strokes to move rapidly across the canvas, revealing subtle figurative elements and articulating an impression of excitement.

 

 

“For me, love was flowing into my paintings like a river, pouring to the peace and pounding of my heart, desperate to catch every breath. I’m tired of trying to be and will just be. And now my paintings will just breathe.”
— Jadé Fadojutimi

 

Writing is a crucial part of interpretating Fadojutimi’s works with each title acts like a tiny story. The title Debris is welcome in this stream of thought again demonstrates how the artist is not afraid to embrace mistakes and imperfections that are inevitable during her uninhibited creative process. Fadojutimi's work is a testament to expressive abstraction, where brush strokes and colour become the language, conveying emotions and thoughts, reflecting their own fragility and spontaneity.

 

 

Collector's Digest

 

• Currently living and working in London, Jadé Fadojutimi studied at The Slade School of Fine Art, University College London, where she earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2015. She then went on to complete her Master of Fine Arts degree from the Royal College of Art in London in 2017.

• Jadé Fadojutimi's work I Present Your Royal Highness, 2018, is acquired by the Tate Museum as the youngest artist to be included in the collection. Her works are also collected by Walker Art Centre, Baltimore Museum of Art, and The Studio Museum in Harlem. Her artworks have been highly sought after at auctions, with a top record of $1,612,326 USD set by Phillips London in 2021. She was featured in the 2021 Liverpool Biennial and participated in the 2022 Venice Biennale, the Milk of Dreams. Her first institutional exhibition was held at PEER Gallery in London in 2019, followed by a solo exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, in 2021. In 2022, she took over Gagosian’s booth during Frieze London and her paintings quickly sold out. In 2023, Fadojutimi’s solo exhibition at the Hepworth Wakefield gave visitors an opportunity to experience her work in the context of modern British collections. Debris is welcome in this stream of thought is undoubtedly a highlight of this auction season.

 

 

ⁱ Jadé Fadojutimi, quoted in Jesture, Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, 2021, p.10

ⁱⁱ ibid.