Sola Olulode is a British-Nigerian artist born in 1996 in London. Her paintings explore notions of race, history, being and belonging. Olulode celebrates all facets of Black identity feminity and non-binary individuals. The bodies of these Black figures tend to take up a lot of space, dominating the majority of the canvas boldly and unapologetically. Her paintings depict her personal experiences, she is very much interested in celebrating the relationships between Black women, translating the beauty, vulnerability and essence of these encounters onto the canvas. She is aware of the traditional archaic illustrations of ‘Black Love’ often plagued with notions of struggle and despair. Olulode is aware of the lack of representation of Black figures in more serene settings, in love, at rest or simply just in a state of being and existing beyond traditional societal barriers. Olulode’s use of warm balmy colours give her work a restful ambiance, for her the the Black experience needs to be celebrated, in her own experience it’s always been there but she aims to capture and spotlight it where others individuals from similar backgrounds can connect and relate with it or those who are not can at least engage and begin to understand on a much deeper level. Olulode received her BA in Fine Art Painting from the University of Brighton in 2018. Recent exhibitions include 1:54 Contemporary African Art Fair (2022), Bold Black British, Christie’s, London (2021); Stäying Alive, Berntson Bhattacharjee, Sweden (2021); An Infinity of Traces, Lisson Gallery, London (2021); Fight or Flight, Roman Road, London (2020) and Blacklisted: An Indefinite Revolution, Alice Black, London (2020)