The SLG and Bonington Gallery are delighted to announce that Motunrayo Akinola is the 13th South London Gallery Postgraduate Artist in Residence.
Now in it’s 13th year, the South London Gallery Postgraduate Residency offers a recent graduate the opportunity to work within the SLG, create new work and make their own solo exhibition. This year, the artist in residence will also be working with Bonington Gallery in Nottingham.
Motunrayo Akinola is a London-based artist who uses images of the home and everyday materials to explore comfort and belonging. He creates sculptures, installations, sound and drawings. He studied at RA Schools, graduating in 2023.
On the announcement, Akinola says: “I’m excited to be awarded the opportunity to create a body of work which speaks of, and is in conversation with the gallery’s surrounding and wider communities. Moments of chaos, sensitivity, and thunderous gusto pending”
As a British-born Nigerian who has spent time in and now feels comfortable in both countries, Akinola’s work exposes the nuanced differences between the two places. During the residency his research will explore nostalgia, post-colonial power dynamics and the psychology of ownership. Akinola is interested in attitudes born from colonisation that linger in the present. By observing subtle slips in culture, he intends to come to a new understanding around the ownership of space.
As part of the residency, Akinola will get a studio space in the South London Gallery. We are looking forward to seeing what he creates during his six months with us!
Previous SLG Postgraduate Artists in Residence include John Costi, Shamica Ruddock, Ufuoma Essi, Abbas Zahedi and Laurie Robins.
The Postgraduate Residency is supported by the Paul and Louise Cooke Endowment. The exhibition will tour to Bonington Gallery in January 2025.
