This is a heartfelt and beautifully written tribute to Hassan Aliyu, a talented artist who has made a significant impact in Nigeria, Africa, Globally and the lives of many others by Nigeria’s golden voice on air, journalist and media enterpreneur – Kadaria Ahmed. We all know her for her awe – inspiring presence when interviewing presidential contestants during the electioneering season on our television back home in Nigeria which is always a global appeal. She is a renowned broadcast journalist with track record working for British Broadcasting Corporation, Next newspapers, she is the founder of DariaMedia and the CEO of NowRadio. Kadaria Ahmed is a proudly Nigerian ambassador.
In her review, she vividly describe the first time she encountered Hassan’s paintings, which were infused with love and a deep appreciation for the beauty of the black woman. In her remarks, his work resonated with her on a personal level, celebrating her authentic self and challenging the dominant white standards of beauty.
Her profound essay highlights Hassan’s intellectual approach to art, which is informed by his understanding of geopolitics, colonialism, imperialism, and identity. She also touch on his evolution as artist, exploring new techniques and mediums while remaining true to his core values.
This piece concludes with a sense of privilege and gratitude for having witnessed Hassan’s artistic journey.
Kadaria Ahmed share a link to his latest work, “Don’t Keep Your Art in the Finger-Deep Blue Sea,” which showcases his continued growth and innovation as an artist.
‘The first time I saw a Hassan Aliyu painting, I was enthralled. I had just turned 20, was very political, going through my marxist phase and beginning to really engage with feminist thought and writings.
I was very much grappling with issues around female sexuality and its commodification especially in popular culture.
Given that Hassan’s early work revolved around the female form including the nude female form, the instinct was to reject the paintings because well, could it be exploitative? Could it be pornography?
Remember, I was this Muslim girl from the north with elements of purittanical values deeply embedded in me.
But I didn’t, because I couldn’t, because Hassan’s paintings were fully engorged with love and it came through on canvas.
Love for not just the female form, but specifically the black woman. In an era in which the standards of beauty were almost always white . Where I had personally faced colourism , that’s another long story😁, and when black woman were barely found in any of the Arts, be it film or paintings or in books, Hassan’s canvases were astonishing . They were a gift.
Everywhere I looked in that studio, we were been celebrated, our beauty was being captured, presented and preserved. It was truly a labour of love what Hassan was doing on canvas and I remember sitting in his studio in Anthony Village, Maryland, Lagos, watching him work and feeling seen in my authentic self, remarked Kadaria Ahmed who is now a collector.
I know many in our female cycle who hung out with us including his then girlfriend, now wife Bunmi, felt the same way. Bunmi perhaps more than us 😁 because she was clearly the muse for many of those early paintings.
And talking to Hassan as well, I understood quickly just how much intellect he brought to his Art. His knowledge of and understating of geo – politics, colonialism , imperialism, race, identity and more, all shaped his work and he wasn’t shy of speaking his mind and making his position on significant national and international issues clear on canvas.
Thirty plus years on and although now living in the UK, Hassan is painting and excelling still, thankfully. Actually he now has a Doctorate Degree in Fine Arts -🙌🏾
But while Hassan’s art has evolved and his work on canvas involves collages and he is big on abstracts , (funny how my taste has also evolved , I now collect abstracts ,mostly ); the depth of the work is still rooted in love, in knowledge of history and so of self, in his understanding of our role as black people in building civilizations , our place in this world, in grappling with the issues good and bad that have shaped us and in asking questions about the way forward.
It is a privilege to have a front row seat to Hassan Aliyu’s art. I share this 👇🏿 with you
Review by Kadaria Ahmed/Photograph/Google /Artworks/Hassan Aliyu
iBAND Magazine 