Menu
The New Contemporary Art Magazine

Behind Oresegun Olumide’s Hyperrealistic Portraits

Nigerian artist Oresegun Olumide goes beyond realism with his meticulously detailed oil paintings that could easily be mistaken for photographs. Notoriously difficult to capture in fine art, water plays a central role in his portraits: each figure is unclothed, allowing Olumide to explore the distinct texture and aesthetic quality of water-on-skin.

Nigerian artist Oresegun Olumide goes beyond realism with his meticulously detailed oil paintings that could easily be mistaken for photographs. Notoriously difficult to capture in fine art, water plays a central role in his portraits: each figure is unclothed, allowing Olumide to explore the distinct texture and aesthetic quality of water-on-skin.

Olumide’s intention is to communicate the centrality of water in everyday terms: “Many do not think of appreciating water. Every day, everybody touches water but nobody thinks of creating something about [it]. That was the challenge I took and decided to do series of water-on-body art works.” His ability to capture the shine, translucence, and motion of water speaks to his incredible ability to work with light. Each figure shimmers and takes on a sacred serenity, as if rendered divine by the liquid, calling to mind artists like Linnea Strid, formerly featured on Hi-Fructose.

Ultimately, he is inspired by lived experience in his home: “Things and activities I see regularly in my environment [inspire] my painting. I admire the way Nigerians, especially the ones that are not financially fine, strive to live. They are contented and happy with the little they have, all these inspire my work.” Depending on the level of detail, each painstakingly precise painting takes Olumide anywhere from two weeks to months. He harbors a sense of transcendence, aiming to go beyond what is actual: “[My genre] is called realism, but I will call my paintings ‘hyper realism’ because I always love my work to surpass what is seen as realistic.”

Meta
Share
Facebook
Reddit
Pinterest
Email
Related Articles
"Their world was soft like melancholy. The conversation was silent. Their faces were small and round, incapable of invoking fear. Once the door was open, nothing could be unseen." This is how Kathie Olivas describes the childlike subjects of her latest exhibition at AFA gallery, "Safe from Tomorrow". The show boasts a series of 20 new paintings and 16 sculptures inspired by early Americana portraiture. The nostalgia felt by her palette and inspiration is constrasted with a concept set in the future.
Rebecca Hastings' art is a family affair. The Australian artist uses herself and her children as the focal subjects in her highly realist oil paintings - yet noticeably absent from these portraits is the sentimentality one would expect an artist-mother to insert into her depictions of family life. Instead, Hastings subverts these idealized expectations to reveal the more complex realities of child rearing that is rarely touched upon in glossy advertisements or family portraits.
England based artist Dylan Andrews uses light and shadow to portray emotion in his drawings. His monochromatic charcoal portraits build up to a dramatic intensity that is almost surreal. Owing to the drama and atmosphere in his pieces is the use of black and white high contrast of tones. Pattern and texture is another aspect of the work that he uses to explore the emotional possibilities. The shadows on his young subjects' extend the reality of the image beyond the page, a reflection from an object we cannot see. 
On the section marked “Giant Drawing” on Sergio Barrale’s website, a factoid provides a sense of the hardship that goes into each portrait: “500-700 pencils died in the process of making these works.” Look into any corner of Sergio’s “faces,” and you’ll believe him.

Subscribe to the Hi-Fructose Mailing List