Asiru Olatunde (Nigerian, 1918-1993)


Domestic scenes with flora and fauna signed 'ASIRU OLATUNDE' (lower centre)aluminium repoussé panel affixed to board83.5 x 151cm (32 7/8 x 59 7/16in).unframed
|Like his father and grandfather before him, Asiru Olatunde was a blacksmith. In 1961 he began to create figures of animals out of recycled copper and aluminium, and this work evolved into a unique repoussé technique on aluminium panels. His subjects include narratives drawn from Yoruba oral tradition, Bible stories set in Nigerian settings and scenes from everyday life. One image seen repeatedly throughout his work is the tree of life, a universal motif that also recalls his connections to the groves of the Oshun shrine.