Young and In Charge: Temi Odutokun

Walking in the footsteps of a parent or parents who are seen as legends in the industry cannot be an easy decision to make. You are constantly being held up to a certain standard, kept on a pedestal, expected to be either as good as them or even better than they are. Our young person of the week made the difficult decision to follow in her father's footstep and has adopted a philosophy that I hope most of our youths adopt. Meet our Young Person of the week, Temi Odutokun, I hope you enjoy getting to know her as much as I did.

Tell us a little about yourself.

I was born the second of four daughters to Gani and Elizabeth Odutokun in Zaria, Nigeria. I am essentially a happy person and almost everything I do and love is geared towards keeping it that way. My family is my world and I am thankful for them every moment that I live. If I were to have a choice a second time what family I’ll want to be born into, I’ll beg for things to stay the same.

What was growing up like? What was it like growing up with a renowned Nigerian painter, Gani Odulokun, as your father?

I had a very stable and beautiful life growing up. My dad and my mum tried to give us their very best upbringing in ways of free spiritedness and moral rightness at the same time. My sisters and I were the best of friends and I remember lots of laughter growing up. Even though I was only 8 when my dad passed, I remember much of my time with him. He was a really gentle man and as much as he was mostly busy working, he gave time and attention to family. There used to be a lot of students and colleagues of his coming by the house to who had to talk with him or listen to him, watch him work or work with him. That was the norm for me growing up. My sisters and I however, all had exceptional talent in art compared to other children our age and my dad encouraged us every time.

I didn’t know how well known and respected my father was until he died. I observed the level of attention the event of his passing caused and listened to things people said and read what people had written. I had always been interested in everything to do with him even before I knew I was to follow in the same line professionally.

Tell us a little about your educational background.

I grew up and studied entirely in the environment of the Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria. I attended the University Staff Children’s School, the University Secondary School – Demonstration Secondary School, A.B.U Zaria and I studied Fine Arts in the same University, specialised in painting and graduated in 2009. I am currently pursuing a Masters degree in Art History in the same institution. I have been… quite stable, I like to call it. (Lol)

What inspired you to start painting, a passion for painting or was it a desire to follow in your dad’s footstep?

The truth is I only knew my father was an artist, I didn’t know details about all he had going on. I used to watch him paint and draw. The smell of gouache, paper, wood and oil paint will always be pleasant reminders of the times when I would literally look up at him while he worked. Not studying what he was doing, mostly playing with his work items- pencils, cutters, pins papers and things of the sort. He never complained or found my presence distracting and if he did, well he obviously never showed it. I’d been encouraged to study fine arts when I was thirteen by a young man who was a student of fine arts at the time. He saw my potential and encouraged me. He is a brilliant artist himself, Femi Kinrin.

You recently added photographer to your portfolio, what inspired the move? Are you giving up on painting?

I certainly am not giving up on painting because I now also love to take pictures. I still get the urge to paint a lot and although I don’t paint as much as I would if I didn’t have an equally demanding passion, I still do so when I can. I was encouraged by a friend who saw potential in my pictures, to nurture the talent he thought I had. I had feelings of guilt about giving attention to photography while I could have been painting and he let me know there was absolutely nothing wrong with that. I’m thankful for his intervention. I have a strong love for both.

How did your love for photography grow?

I had always loved pictures. My dad took several photos of us and after he passed my mum continued the culture. She got me a camera when I was in 300 level. I just loved to take pictures. To me they are beautiful ways of recording moments with loved ones. Moments that never come back but which one could relive while looking at photos. This is possibly the reason for my preference of photographing people to other subjects, the same way that I’m more inclined to representing human figures in my paintings or drawings. Photography has always been in the family.

Do you see yourself mixing painting and photography? If you mix them presently, how has the experience been like?

Painting is what I am fortunate to do both as a profession and as a hobby. And while photography is still a thing I do mostly as a hobby for now, they certainly complement each other. My knowledge of composition, colour and a deeper level of observation certainly enhance the looks of photos that I take. It has been exciting on the whole.

It is rare to see curators in Nigeria, what has the experience been like? From your experience, would you say Nigerians appreciate arts?

There actually are a lot of curators of contemporary visual arts in Nigeria presently. It isn’t rare. A curator is essentially one who is involved in taking care of works of art, maintaining their quality and looks, restoring them where they happen to get damaged, documenting them and ensuring the safety and appropriateness of the conditions they are stored or displayed in. Exhibition planning and mounting are also major responsibilities of a curator. There are as many curators as there are professional art galleries in the country- private or government owned, even more as every one such institution or organization may have several curators working there. However like in every profession, there are people who are outstanding in the delivery of their services or knowledge so, there are some exceptionally renowned curators in the country. Appreciation for arts in Nigeria is better than I knew it to be in time not so far back. The reason for this I think is largely due to the increased access to the internet and the many windows it avails people to possibilities and new intrigues in various fields. People perceive it from their visual experiences and then have better appreciation for it. There have always been patrons of the arts in Nigeria but I think the level of appreciation for it among most people here is better than was the case before.

What is your typical day like?

I’ll just describe my typical weekend. When I’m not at work, I spend time with my family and friends, I take photos when I feel the urge to or when there is an event and I watch a lot of television and do some research on the internet as well as do some social networking.

What do you love most about what you do (curating, painting and photography)?

That I get to do the few things that I will much rather be doing above all things else; that I get to meet people and share in moments of their joys and sometimes pain; that I see the world in beautiful images through the lens of a camera or that I get to represent it in strokes of whatever medium I choose, just the way I perceive it; that I get to recreate or record nature and that even with all these priceless rewards, I still get monetary gains. It’s an absolute blessing.

What has been your best work ever?

I’d like to think I haven’t made that yet.

What are the difficulties involved?

I like to think of challenges as chances to figure out solutions. I’ve always gained a level of satisfaction from fixing things, so where there are difficulties in my profession, I dwell on the means to the solution. I really can’t think of anything particularly difficult about my practice for now. I can say though that I long for better equipment for my photography. (Lol) But it will all come in time.

If you weren’t doing this what would you have been doing?

Probably practicing architecture if I ever overcame my apparent inability to comprehend mathematics.

Have you ever felt like giving up on following any of your dreams? If you have, what motivated you to carry on?

Not ever. I have always had all the right kinds of encouragement- the most important of which has come from home and I have had wonderful friends and mentors. I have it good and I know it. ☺

Being the daughter of a renowned painter must come with its unique set of difficulties. People automatically put you on pedestal, expecting your work to be exceptional, expecting it to be as good as or even better than your dad’s, how do you cope with all these expectations?

I used to feel a lot of pressure when I got into the same university where he studied and taught and with which he is associated. I constantly had people telling me I had to do better than he did if I wanted to follow in same line and I still get people telling me things like that. I decided at an early stage that the fact was that I respect everything my father stood for and admire his art very much, but I am not the man. I am Temi his daughter with similar interests and inclinations but different ideas for actualising them and different passions and so I figured that I already was great by sheer virtue of being a product of him and an amazing woman. I didn’t have to try. I never compare myself with my dad. Things, I found, are just the way they are and are beautiful without effort.

Who or what inspires you?

Mostly people- the human body, the human spirit, but I get inspiration from any experience from my everyday life that leaves an exceptional imprint on my mind.

Considering the level of success you have attained, youths out there would be itching to know how old you are.

I’ll turn 27 on the 8th of November 2013.

Asides work, what do you do for fun?

I spend time with family and friends, take walks, drives, listen to music and watch television and find things to make me laugh a lot.

How do you intend to make a difference in Nigeria with what you do?

I believe that the essence of a person is aware of certain truths like beauty, morality, freedom and other such natural gifts. I hope that in my efforts to stay true to my beliefs in these things of nature, it will show in the art that I create. I hope that by virtue of the innate knowledge people have of these gifts of nature, they will see in my works, the message of love or pain or absurdity or pleasantness or laughter or morality or spirituality and relate to them in whatever way they can. I hope my work makes a difference not just in my home country but in the wider world.

Advice to young people that wish to follow in your footstep?

Don’t hold back on any of your passions though they may be a hundred. Make out time for all, but once any doesn’t feel as exciting anymore take a break from it. Listen to older people talk, form your own opinions, read good books, watch the news, have an open heart, laugh, and take time out for yourself often enough.

Where do you see yourself  in five years?

It is unclear in my mind. I hope to still be doing the things that make me happy but on a wider scale so I can share that with more people. Hopefully I’ll have a family of my own. I’ll just like to still have reasons to laugh a lot- tomorrow, five years, ten years from now; to be fulfilled.

Time for some pictures.