Today we’d like to introduce you to Sade Adewale.
Hi Sade, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’ve had a love for art since childhood. I still remember like yesterday my mom taking me to First Friday gallery walks on Broad St when I was 8 and talking Van Gogh. In middle and high school I attended School of the Arts where I was classically trained in various mediums and art styles. That is where my love for colored pencil bloomed. After graduating though, my passion waned and I stepped away from my art for some time to focus on my studies in college. It wasn’t until Covid that I began doing my art seriously again; I gained a real feel for my specific art style and refined my skills as a mixed media artist. Since then I’ve had my work on exhibit at Charleston’s City Gallery, Silver Hills Studio, and several other art exhibits.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The path of an artist is never a smooth one I think. The reason I stepped way from art after going to college was because of burnout. I was uninspired and aimless. When I would find the inspiration I would lose the momentum. I’d hit a creative block and stay there for years sometimes before circling back to complete a piece. I struggle a great deal with fear as well and being afraid to fail. Sometimes this leads to stagnation and discouragement. That said, I have been learning the best way to handle that fear is to leap in head first and see what happens! I’m often surprised to find I’m more prepared than I ever believed. I also learned to fight creative block by picking up new mediums and experimenting. The vision will come.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
At my core I’m a mixed media artist, but I specialize in colored pencil and photo realism. Much of my work is afrofuturist in nature, as I often draw on my memories surrounding how wondrous and magical the world seemed growing up, as well as my experiences coming of age as a black woman for inspiration. My piece ‘The Family and The Distance’ explores my struggle with identity and the duality of black womanhood. The absence of eyes being a window to the soul; am I the mother, the matriarch or a strong independent black woman? How do I exist as one? Through the use of all types of mediums from colored pencils and alcohol inks to fabrics and foliage I’m able to get as close as possible to capturing the vibrance and essence of existing as a black individual. I think that is what sets me apart and makes my work memorable. The best compliment I’ve received was someone being surprised that all of my work is done by hand and in no way digitally produced.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
Charleston is such a unique city. It’s truly a place you miss as soon as you leave. Aside from the beaches, nature, and local wildlife; easily my favorite things are the food and the arts here. There’s no shortage of incredible restaurants and cuisine to enjoy, you could eat someplace new everyday for a year and still not hit them all. And we love the creative arts here. Music, visual arts, dance, and the theatre alike there is always something to find. On the flip side of that though, there is quite a disparity for the people of color here. These things that make the city special are not so accessible. There’s an ever-growing and pressing issue of gentrification within and surrounding the city that’s impacting the overall cost of living for everyone in the tri-county area. And though there is a rich underground arts scene for artists and creatives of color I would like to see better representation and access to the more mainstream arts for us here in Charleston, so I am definitely thrilled to see wonderful people like you all here working to highlight creatives like myself!
Pricing:
- I have signed limited edition prints available for purchase please contact me for pricing.
Contact Info:
- Email: oyin@artniyo.com
- Instagram: @art.niyo
