IyunOla Sanyaolu: How to Hold a Moonbeam; How Do You Hold Memory?

Rele Lagos proudly presents How to Hold a Moonbeam; How Do You Hold Memory? the second solo exhibition by IyunOla Sanyaolu. Sanyaolu’s practice is primarily informed by an exploration of texture and sculptural possibilities. As an abstract artist, she aligns her aesthetic with the broader canon of the impasto tradition. Working with layers of thickly applied paint, her work often explores the emotive qualities of color while capturing obscure silhouettes of human experiences.

Her second solo exhibition and first in Lagos, Nigeria – How to Hold a Moonbeam; How Do you Hold Memory? represents a natural progression on themes of human decisions, solitary reflections, and transient experiences which characterized her debut exhibition. In this new series, Sanyaolu’s deeper embrace of the obscure enriches the layering and fading of memory, inviting us to reflect on the accuracy of our recollections.

The first piece in this new body of work begins in her mother’s garden. Sanyaolu recalls a poignant conversation with her mother that confronted her with mortality. In the garden, I saw everything my mother had planted, and I had wondered what life would be when she is no longer here…. and how everything she has brought to earth might fade away, how that moment was becoming a memory

The reflection of life’s ephemerality inspired her to illustrate the uncertainty of these memories, sculpting her memories of amorphous places in desaturated colors. The interplay of shadow and the figure functions like a sundial capturing the passage of time while inviting us to confront our gradual erasure and foster an appreciation for the fleeting moments that shape our lives.

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