Jelosimi Art Centre: Transforming Oshodi community through arts

For Sobayo Abolore, building the Jelosimi Art Centre in Oshodi Lagos, his host community, where he was born and grew up, is a way of giving back to the society for developmental purposes.

The multi-million naira edifice situated at Arowojobe Street in Oshodi, connects with the Yoruba traditional system of learning the basics of the language, thus taking the people back to their roots. This is the reason for the maiden exhibition at the center tagged, ‘Jelesinmi’, series 1.

Sobayo explained that the foundation is a unique project that connects him to his heart and roots as a Yoruba boy. He now appreciates better the Yoruba cultural system of learning and tries to integrate his community, especially children and the youths into learning.

“Jelosimi Art Center is a unique project that connects arts to my heart. It even connects me to my root as a Yoruba. The foundation is important for the development of my Oshodi community.” He said at the exhibition opening over the weekend.

Sobayo, who has shown his works in many countries including: United States, Finland, Germany, Thailand and Cameroon, among others, stressed the importance of the exhibition as he explored the platform to take the Oshodi to the next level.

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For him, creating a legacy that would transform his immediate community through Jelosimi Art Center, is a departure from living a cosy life so as to invest his resources for the economic benefits of his people.

“Opening the edifice is my own little way of changing the world from my own small corner or community. When I change myself, it will reflect on my community and the world.”

Importantly, questions were asked about the security of the art centre, considering the perceived chaotic and violent nature of Oshodi, which could consume the project since the community is prone to civil disturbances.

The Yaba College of Technology Arts graduate believes that Jelosimi Art Center is a resource place that has the capacity to take many children away from the streets and open their minds to creative works such as arts thereby engage them in economic activities.

Abolore told his guests that he has dedicated 20 percent of his monthly income to the foundation so that the center would live to serve its purpose.

Jelosimi Art Center walls are adorned with great and attractive paintings available for art collections. Art collectors are given opportunity to visit the center and see for themselves what the artist has in offer for them.

Apart from the visible art works, the center also has some special rooms including Kolo room and tie and dye.

The Kolo room showcased the traditional cash saving boxes, which people used to save money in the olden days, which is at variance with today’s modern digital system.

But Abolore said, the Kolo boxes today are used as symbols to save the memories of people. The idea is to tell the present generation of children that existed a traditional method of saving money called Kolo.

Beside the Kolo room is the tie and dye room, where clothes are dyed with fantastic colours that showcase the Yoruba cultural heritage. Price for the wears are affordable, ranging from N5,000.00.

Sobayo Abolore Art Foundation is a non profit organization aimed at building an enabling environment for creativity and artistic impression to thrive.

With the focus of engaging children and youths and luring them away from social violence, while inspiring social change through the funding of Jelosimi Art Center, the presence of the foundation will also educate future generations of leaders through arts, and also support young individuals in becoming active leaders who understand their duties and rights and ways of developing their own ideas.

The resource centre has various programmes such as, art classes, street college, I’m the future, monthly motivational movies, language classes and cultural enlightenment. Others are contemporary Nigerian/African arts, artist talk and graffiti classes.