"Sold For N56m": Artwork Named 'Three Yoruba Brothers' by Nigerian Artist Auctions in UK For £31,000

"Sold For N56m": Artwork Named 'Three Yoruba Brothers' by Nigerian Artist Auctions in UK For £31,000

  • An artwork created by a Nigerian artist has sold a whopping £31,750 (N56 million) during an auction in the UK
  • The artwork, named 'The Three Yoruba Brothers', was painted by Olaolu Akeredolu-Ale, also known as Olaolu Slawn
  • However, after the artwork was auctioned at Sotheby’s auction in the UK, there was online backlash as some Nigerians said they did not like it

An artwork by a Nigerian artist has been auctioned at Sotheby’s auction in the UK.

The artwork by Olaolu Akeredolu-Ale, also known as Olaolu Slawn, is called 'The Three Yoruba Brothers.'

The Three Yoruba Brothers artwork by Olaolu Akeredolu-Ale.
The artwork is known as 'The Three Yoruba Brothers'. Photo credit: X/Olaolu Slawn.
Source: Twitter

'The Three Yoruba Brothers' sold for a whopping £31,750 (N56 million) at the biggest auction house in the UK.

Olaolu made a post about the sale. He posted on his X account:

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"My work “The three Yoruba brothers” just sold at the @Sothebys contemporary auction for £31,750, more than 350% increase from the estimate, at the biggest auction house in the UK, Amen."

The news of the auction of the 'Three Yoruba Brothers' was also posted by NTS, an X handle that shares news about creativity.

However, it got many negative reactions from Nigerians who said they did not like how Yoruba people were depicted in the artwork.

The work shows three hideous-looking monkeys with big lips named Alara, Ajero, and Orangun.

Many comments under the post said the work was an unwelcomed racial depiction of the Yoruba race, and they disassociated themselves from it.

See the post below:

Reactions to Olaolu Akeredolu-Ale's work

@Itzpelumi said:

"It’s you and your Yoruba brothers that looks like that."

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@Barracuda1592 commented:

"As a Yoruba man I feel offended by this art. It doesn’t depict anything yoruboid."

@ololademiyusluv said:

"I wonder how people spend so much on ugly arts, doesn't make sense to me."

@Mubxeel7373 said:

"Aside from the fact that I don't know art, what part of this is Yoruba aside from the wrapper in the background? Are you trying to tell me that Yoruba people look like apes?"

Kuli kuli seller gets N5k from street artist

Also, in another story, Legit.ng reported that a brilliant street artist made a beautiful artwork of a woman who sells kuli kuli, and she was excited to receive it.

After he posted the artwork on social media, a fan of his sent him the sum of N5,000 to give to the kuli kuli seller.

A TikTok video showed when the woman got the money, and she jumped up in uncontrollable excitement.

Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Israel Usulor avatar

Israel Usulor (Human-Interest editor) Israel Usulor is a journalist who has 9 years of experience. He worked at The Prime Newspaper and has published articles in TheCable Newspaper. Israel graduated with distinction from Fidei Polytechnic (Mass Commun, 2016). Israel has interviewed Zannah Mustapha, the man who helped negotiate the release of Chibok Girls, and Kunle Adeyanju, who rode a bike from London to Lagos. He covered exclusive stories on Chef Dami during her Guinness World Records cookathon. Email: israel.usulor@corp.legit.ng.

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