OYELAMI, Muraina

Painter, Printmaker Address: Obatala Centre for Creative Arts, Oyelami Close, PO Box 198, Iraqbiji, Oyo State. Birth: 1940, in Iragbiji, Oshun State. Training: Joined Duro Ladipo Theatre Company as an actor and drummer, 1962; attended Oshogbo art workshops, Oshogbo, 1964; attended printmaking workshops conducted by Ru van Rossem, Oshogbo, 1965, and Ile-Ife, 1973; certificate in dramatic arts, University of Ife, 1978, specializing in design. Profile: Brother of Ade Oyelami; teacher, music and dance, University of Ife, Ile-Ife, 1976-1987; first African artist-in-residence, Iwalewa- Haus, Bayreuth, Germany, 1982; curator, University Museum, University of Ife, Ile-Ife; founder, Obatala Centre for Creative Arts, Iragbiji; also an accomplished musician. Solo Exhibitions Goethe Institute, Lagos, February 11-27, 1970. Goethe Institute, Lagos, February 23-March 2, 1972. Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA, February 1974. "Muraina Oyelami," Opus 2 Galleries, Washington, DC, May 31-June 1974. Goethe Institute, Lagos, July 24-August 2, 1974. "Exhibition of Works by Muraina Oyelami," Goethe Institute, December 17-23, 1975. Goethe Institute, Lagos, 1981. "Images of Woodside," Whitney Young Resource Centre, USIS, Lagos, 1985. 'The Art of Intuition," SargeantJohnson Gallery, Western Addition Cultural Center, San Francisco, California, August 1985. "Muraina Oyelami," Mary Porter Sesnon Gallery, University of California, Santa Cruz, California, USA, September 1985. "Muraina Oyelami Paintings," Fondo del Sol, Washington, DC, November 1985. Group Exhibitions "Moderne Kunst aus Oshogbo," NeueMunchner Galerie, Munich, Germany, 1965; Traverse Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland, 1967. "ContemporaryAfrican Art," Institute of Contemporary Arts, London, March 7-April 18, 1967. Goethe Institute, Lagos, December 13-22, 1967. "Paintings, Printsand Sculpture" and "Prints and Oil Paintings," University of Ife, Ile-Ife, 1968-1969 session. "Contemporary African Art," Otis Art Institute of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, California, USA, March 13-May 4, 1969. [traveled in the USA from 1969-1973 to: Studio Museum in Harlem and New York University, New York; University of Missouri, Columbia; Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland; West Virginia State College, Institute; North East Missouri State College, Kirskville; Rio Hondo College, Whittier, California; Compton Community College, Compton, California; Citrus College, Azusa, California; Mira Costa College, Oceanside, California, and Civic Arts Gallery, WalnutCreek, California]. "Oshogbo Artists," Goethe Institute, Lagos, March 19-26, 1969. "Contemporary African Art," Camden Arts Centre, London, August-September 1969. "Oeuvres Africaines Nouvelles," Musee de I'Homme, Paris, France, February 13- April 13, 1970. Second Indian Triennial, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, India, 1971. "Moderne Malerei in Africa," Museum fur Volkerkunde, Vienna, Austria, December 1970-February1971. "Oshogbo Artists," Goethe Institute, Lagos, January 13-23, 1971. "New African Art in Czechoslovakia," NaprstekMuseum, Prague, Czechsolovakia, January-April 1972. "Four Contemporary African Artists," Newark State College, Union, New Jersey, USA, March 6-30, 1972. "Contemporary Nigerian Art," Montgomery College, Rockville, Maryland, USA, May 1972. The Art Society of the International Monetary Fund, Washington, DC, September 19-October 19, 1972. "Africa Creates 72," Union Carbide Gallery, Union Carbide Building, New York, USA; Community Church and Inter-Church Center, New York, USA; Bedford- Stuyvesant Restoration Center, Brooklyn, New York, USA, October 1972-April 1973. "Oshogbo Artists," Goethe Institute, Lagos, November 12-18, 1972. "African Art," Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA, February- April 1973. Goethe Institute, Lagos, October 3-November 9, 1973. "Contemporary Nigerian Graphics and Textiles," National Center of Afro-American Artists, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, October 14-November 5, 1973. "Contemporary Nigerian Fabrics and Prints," Ile-Ife Museum, Ile-Ife Black Humanitarian Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, January 1974. "Contemporary African Art," Museum of African Art, Washington, DC, February 23-March 24, 1974. "Tradition and Change in Yoruba Art," E. B. Crocker Art Gallery, Sacremento, California, USA, March 9-April 14, 1974. "African Prints: An Exhibition of Contemporary African Art," Kresge Art Gallery, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA, June 15-July 7, 1974. "Three Oshogbo Artists," Aladire Gallery, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, July- August 1974. "Contemporary Nigerian Art," Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, July 25- September 1, 1974. "Ife Workshop Prints," Montgomery College, Rockville, Maryland, USA, February 10-26, 1975. "International Exhibition for the Benefit of CARE's World Hunger Fund," Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, Maryland, USA, March 15-28, 1975. "Visions of Africa," Afro-American Cultural Center, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, Ohio, USA, May 12-23, 1975. "Print Workshop Collection," African Heritage Center, North Carolina A & T State University, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA, February 1976. FESTAC'77, Lagos, 1977. Goethe Institute, Lagos, 1978. "National Art Exhibition," National Theatre, Lagos, September 30-October 7, 1978. "Moderne Kunst aus Afrika," Staatlichen Kunsthalle, Berlin, Germany, June 24- August 12, 1979. "Twenty Years of Oshogbo Art," Goethe Institute, Lagos, 1980. "Contemporary Nigerian Artists: Ten Artists of the Oshogbo Workshops," New World Center Campus Art Gallery, Miami, USA, January 30-February 29, 1980; Metropolitan Miami-Dade Library System South Regional Library, Miami, USA, March 7-28, 1980. "Neue Kunst in Afrika," Mainz, Germany, June 1980; Bayreuth, Germany, July- August 1980; Worgl, Austria, September 1980. "Oshogbo Artists," Oshogbo, July 1980. "National Art Exhibition" National Theatre, Lagos, September 25-October 1, 1980. Society of Nigerian Artists, Goethe Institute, Lagos, February 1981. "Contemporary African Art," National Center of Afro-American Artists, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, December 9, 1983-January 31, 1984. "Iwalewa: Afrikanische Kunst Heute," Stadtische Galerie, Regensburg, Germany, June 9-30, 1985. "Oshogbo Art," Commonwealth Institute Art Gallery, London July 4-29, 1985; Commonwealth Institute, Edinburgh, Scotland, August 12-31, 1985. "Myth and Image: An Exhibition of Works by 14 Nigerian Artists," Denton, Texas, USA, October 15-November 10, 1985. "Silver Jubilee National Art Exhibition," National Theatre, Lagos; Lugard Hall, Kaduna, September 26-October 1, 1985. "Oshogbo Artists," Heritage International Hotel, Oshogbo, 1988. "Art from the African Diaspora: BecomingVisible," Aljira, Newark, New Jersey, USA, February 12-March 13, 1988. "Contemporary Arts from Western Nigeria," Zamana Gallery, London, October 27, 1988-January 8, 1989. Goethe Institute, Lagos, January 1989. "Zeitgenossische Nigerianische Kunst," Bonn, Bocholt, and Monchengladbach, Germany, July-October 1989. "Artists of Africa," Tudor Hall, Montreal, Canada, November 29-December 9, 1989. [traveled to Ottawa and Knowlton, Canada, 1989-1990]. "Songs of Power, Songs of Praise: Modern Visions from Haiti, Nigeria and Papua New Guinea," San Jose State University Gallery 1, San Jose, California, USA, September 11-October 18, 1990. Commissions Mural, Ori-Olokun Cultural Centre, Ile-Ife. Mosaics, Faculty of Health Sciences Complex, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. Paintings, State House, Lagos. Writings by the Artist "Wie Ich Kunstler Wurde," pp. 101-106. In: Neue Kunst in Afrika, Berlin, Reimer, 1980. illus. My Life in the Duro Ladipo Theatre. [Bayreuth]: Iwalewa-House, 1982. 16pp. port. (Duro Ladipo Memorial Series; No. 1). "Mbari Mbayo and the Oshogbo Artists," African Arts (Los Angeles) 15 (2): 85-87, February 1982. Yoruba Dundun Music: A New Notation with Basic Exercises & Five Yoruba Drum Repertoires. [Bayreuth: Iwalewa-Haus, 1989]. 72pp. Awards & Honors Gold plaque "in recognition of his contribution to the promotion of understanding between artists of the USA and Nigeria," Art Safari, New York, USA, 1979. Public Collections Iwalewa-Haus, Bayreuth, Germany. Oil paintings on fiber board: "Shrine," and "City"; appliques: "Musician" and one untitled; oil painting on paper: "A Gang of Three Prisoners"; oil paintings: two untitled. Johnson Wax Company, International Council House, Racine, Wisconsin, USA. Oil painting on board. Mbari Art, Washington, DC. National Gallery of Modern Art, Lagos. Oil paintings: "Favourite Themes," "Artist & His Works," "Dreams in Abstract," and "Oba and Olori." Studio Museum in Harlem, New York, USA. Gouache on board, "Untitled." University of Ibadan, Institute of African Studies, Ibadan.