Laolu Senbanjo: "The Sacred Art of the Ori"
Laolu Senbanjo: « L'Art sacré des Ori »
Laolu Senbanjo's motto is: “Everything is my canvas.” Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
surpass all that Europe ever had,]
dépassent ce que l'Europe a jamais volé,
to me when I was a child in Nigeria.
quand j'étais enfant, au Nigéria.
of the Yoruba people,
d'honneur du peuple Yoruba
of treasures that the West does not have.
que l'Occident ne possède pas.
I call my grandmother --
ma grand-mère,
about Yoruba mythology.
sur la mythologie Yoruba.
from the southwestern part of Nigeria,
du sud-ouest du Nigéria.
by these stories.
my art since I was a child.
depuis mon enfance.
you buy at Harlem markets in New York.
sur les marchés à Harlem.
on her arms and her legs.
sur les bras et les jambes.
she was born with them,
qu'elle était née ainsi,
et ces symboles ciselés.
and detailed symbols.
from the Yoruba mythology.
de la mythologie Yoruba.
to influence the artist that I am today.
influencer l'artiste que je suis devenu.
I saw art everywhere.
in Ilorin, in Stadium Road.
où nous vivions à Ilorin, Stadium Road.
at the marble floors,
of patterns and designs in it,
de dessins et de formes.
pouvait les voir.
and I would be like,
et je lui disais :
le marbre. Regarde, il y a un masque. »
see this pattern, see this mask."
"Laolu, I don't see anything."
ce que je voyais dans le sol.
what I saw on the floor.
she got really upset.
elle se fâchait.
avec mes professeurs et parents.
with my teachers and my parents.
"Laolu, we are Christians.
« Laolu, nous sommes chrétiens.
comme tout le monde ?
or maybe you draw chairs or furniture,
des chaises par exemple,
the whole house if I had a chance,
si j'en avais eu l'occasion.
I knew being an artist was not an option,
n'était pas une option.
my parents wanted me to be,
dont mes parents rêvaient,
He was so proud that day.
Il était si fier ce jour-là.
looked like in law school.
de mes cours de droit.
why I wasn't going to class.
pour ne pas y être présent.
at the Human Rights Commission
à la Commission pour les Droits de l'Homme
between getting an education
seeing all the injustice around me,
me frustrait tant.
moyen de l'exprimer.
is controlled by where we are born.
par le lieu où nous sommes né.
a man and a man holding hands,
qui tient la main à un autre homme,
la main d'une femme.
same-sex relationship is criminalized.
sont criminelles.
de 14 ans pour ça.
I like to start a conversation.
je démarre une conversation.
une carte de l'Afrique,
plugged into Africa
qu'on en extrait.
being drained out.
the patterns, the masks, the stories,
les masques, les récits,
to practice art full time.
à New York, pour peindre à temps plein.
que j'allais reprendre mes esprits.
He'll come back."
in New York was not easy,
n'est pas facile.
no representation,
sans représentation.
to make a living.
sur des vêtements pour vivre.
to wear their stories.
de porter leur histoire.
sur tous les supports.
my hand on I painted,
on my Instagram feed,
à mon compte Instagram,
standing in front my art,
une photo devant mon art.
go into her and come out of her literally,
et en ressortir, littéralement.
on human bodies.
à peindre sur les corps humains.
sur le sol de marbre,
and people's bodies.
sur les visages et les corps.
most of my creative instincts
de mes instincts créatifs
on my childhood memories
de ma grand-mère.
and I think to myself, like,
et je pense ceci :
si nous déhambulions tous
if we all walked around
from Yoruba mythology?
de la mythologie Yoruba ? »
The Sacred Art of the Ori was born.
it means your instincts.
vos instincts.
when you tap into your Ori,
quand on s'appuie sur son Ori,
about painting on human bodies.
dans l'acte de peindre sur des corps.
my regular work in Brooklyn,
comme d'habitude à Brooklyn.
pour la vidéo de ma musique ?
for my music video?
how did she even know me?
Of course I thought it was a scam.
C'était impossible.
it was real, it was true,
c'était vrai et réel.
to pay homage to New Orleans,
à New Orleans,
of her creole origins.
ses origines créoles.
from zero to 100 real fast.
en un seul instant.
de moi dans les magazines,
and, like, take everything in.
pour encaisser ce qui m'arrivait.
we work so hard all our lives
toute leur vie
in me is still there,
est toujours vivant.
to fight for what I believe in.
pour ce en quoi je crois.
some of my art in motion.
un peu de mon art en mouvement.
s'il vous plait.
I ever painted in my life,
personnes que j'ai peintes.
entière à les peindre.
my hopes and my fears.
mes espoirs et mes craintes.
one huge, nameless continent
un immense continent anonyme,
over 350 ethnic groups and languages,
de 350 groupes ethniques et langues
parmi une multitude.
that I hope I will be able to change
que j'espère pouvoir changer un jour
on the continent and here,
sur le continent et ici,
que l'art africain
at Harlem markets in New York
sur les marché de Harlem,
you see has a story,
que vous rencontrez a une histoire,
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Laolu Senbanjo - Artist, musician, lawyer, activistLaolu Senbanjo's motto is: “Everything is my canvas.”
Why you should listen
A visual artist, musician, human rights lawyer and activist, Laolu Senbanjo puts his mark on everything from canvas, to shoes, to walls and buildings, to clothing and even the body with his Sacred Art of the Ori. Born and raised in Ilorin, Nigeria, his Yoruba heritage is ever-present in his work, which marries modern detail and ornate style to create a vision of Afrofuturism.
His preferred medium is charcoal, "because it’s something as natural as life and death," he writes, and he also works in acrylics, inks and even wood. Senbanjo created work for the astonishing "Sorry" video from Beyoncé's Lemonade, and he has worked with Angelique Kidjo, Kenneth Cole, Alicia Keys, Usher and many more.
Laolu Senbanjo | Speaker | TED.com