O. Yemi Tubi - An Artist and Advocate for the World’s Peace. I am a Nigerian-born, American-trained Artist residing in the United Kingdom. I am an artist with a unique personal style. Most of my recent paintings were influenced by the political and social upheaval of our world today and the works of Renaissance artists. “A work of art which did not begin in emotion is not art”, so said Paul Cezanne; I was moved by emotion to do most of my political and socially influenced paintings “THE EAGLE HAS LANDED” addresses the American-led war on terror, while “KABIYESI OBA OBAMA (Unquestionable King Obama)” offers a satirical take on the complex relationship between President Barack Obama and Donald Trump. The exchange of missiles of words between President Donald Trump of America and Kim Jong Hu of North Korea provoked me to do the painting “THE CHICKENS’ FIGHT.” In solidarity with Christians beheaded by ISIS in Iraq and Syria, I created “THE BLEEDING ROSE” I also use my work to critique the exploitation of African nations, as seen in AFRICAN’T, HUNGER IN THE LAND OF PLENTY, and OIL: AFRICANS’ WEALTH AND WOE—paintings that reflect the paradox of Africa’s poverty amidst its vast natural wealth. My work, “THE FISHERS OF MEN,” is about the horror of refugees drowning in the Mediterranean Sea. I also used my painting “UKRAINE: THE UNFORTUNATE BRIDE” to speak about the American and Russian-influenced war in Ukraine. To advocate and promote positive change to the climate change I created “MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE” and “NURTURING OUR PLANET” I desire my portrait paintings to be uniquely creative. I do not copy images from pictures. I create what the camera cannot create. I use portrait paintings to tell the stories about my subjects and often use my subjects’ professions to create their portraits as I did with the portrait of Professor Wole Soyinka, 1986 Nobel Prize Winner in Literature in painting “SOYINKA: An Africans’ Literary Icon”, I used artist materials to create my painting “PORTRAIT OF AN ARTIST” and I used the violin to make the face of my subject in the “THE VIOLINIST” My works progress from political paintings to paintings of the facts of the life of people. The overarching theme of my work is "The Facts of Life: Roses and Thorns." Life is roses and thorns; sometimes it emanates the sweet aroma of pleasantness, and sometimes it pricks and causes pain. I often use roses and thorns for portrait paintings of the facts of people's lives. I first employed Roses and Thorns in my political painting “THE BLEEDING ROSES” and has since then adopted this floral iconography style - Roses and Thorns as my unique signature style in some of my paintings like “DOMESTIC ABUSE” and “MY MOTHER, Her Majesty Platinum Jubilee: Her Rosy Reign” further explore this theme, using roses and thorns to portray the complexity of personal and collective experiences. Roses representing joy and achievement, thorns symbolizing struggle and hardship.
