Oladélé Ajiboyé Bamgboyé (born 1963) is a Nigerian-born British artist and scientist known for his Unmasking series which innovated with early 3D technology in the 1990s.
A founding member of the Street Level Gallery in Glasgow and curator at the Cambridge Darkroom Gallery, Bamgboyé has been exhibiting internationally since the mid-1990s. In 1997, he attended documenta X, where he won international acclaim for his work Paradigm Shift: African Stories.
Currently, he is a civil servant and member of the UK Government Science & Engineering Profession.
Early life and education
Bamgboyé was born in Odo-Eku, Nigeria in 1963 as the second of seven children to Salome and Ezra Bamgboyé. In 1975, the family emigrated to Glasgow, Scotland. After 6 years in Scotland, the family moved back to Nigeria in 1981 while he remained in Scotland to continue his studies.
In 1985, he received a Bachelors of Science in Chemical & Process Engineering (BSc) from the University of Strathclyde. He later attended the Slade School of Fine Art, graduating with a Master of Arts in Digital Media & Philosophy of Art in 1998.
Bamgboyé was awarded three residencies: International Artist in Residence Awards at the Banff Centre and ArtPace in 1992 and 1999, respectively, and the Koninkrijk der Nederlanden Artist in Residence Scholarship from the V2_Lab and Witte de Wit in 2000.
The Unmasking series
The Unmasking series was developed and exhibited in three parts and, as noted in the Unmasking-3 Framework, was "a logical development of the artist's general inquiry into the prevalent issues of cultural ethics, the role of a future art practice, and finally making sense of the artist's interest in the intersection of technology, culture, art, philosophy and politics".
First conceptualised when Bamgboyé was at Slade in 1998, it continued during his residency at ArtPace in 2000 and finally culminated in 2001 at Witte de With. Utilising cutting-edge technology for the era, Bamgboyé tested the boundaries of art ownership and commodification by scanning artefacts held in museums and notably the Queen Mother Head, a 16th-century bronze sculpture from Benin, Nigeria, held by the British Museum.
He developed the series with scholars, computer programmers and scientists, publishing the Unmasking 3 Framework with coauthors David England and Ming Tai. Unmasking 3, as a research project and framework, was a joint collaboration with the Foundation for Creative Technology and V2_.
As a lecturer at Bridge the Gap, he focused on his interest in quantum physics and its potential applications in his Unmasking series, the influence of which can be seen in his Yokohama installation of Unmasking-3.
Exhibitions
Solo exhibitionsYearExhibitionGalleryLocation1985PhotographsGlasgow School of ArtGlasgow, Scotland1989ANIMA MUNDI: Still Life in BritainThe Stills GalleryEdinburgh, ScotlandMaison de la Culture Parc FrontenacMontreal, Canada1992Five Big ImagesKiek In de KokTallinn, Estonia1995Well Without EndKünstlerhaus Bethanien Studio IIBerlin, Germany1998The Unmasking, Part ISlade College of Art UCLLondon, UKMovementsStädtische Galerie BremenBremen, GermanyOladele Ajiboye BamgboyéGallery One, CulturgestLisbon, Portugal1999Unmasking Part 2ArtPaceSan Antonio TX, USA2000The Unmasking, Part IIThomas Erben GalleryNew York NY, USAStrangers and ParadiseWitte de WithRotterdam, NetherlandsVideoworksHelsinki Art MuseumHelsinki, Finland2001Unmasking 3Witte de WithRotterdam, Netherlands2002The Hair or the Man (1994) and Blink (2001)Thomas Erben GalleryNew York NY, USA
Group exhibitionsYearExhibitionGalleryLocation1986Nine Photographers at the Glasgow Print StudiosGlasgow Print StudioGlasgow, Scotland1987New Light in Scottish PhotographyThe Stills GalleryEdinburgh, Scotland1991The Problematics of Identity in PhotographyDazibaoMontreal, Canada1994Whitechapel OpenWhitechapel GalleryLondon, UK1995Self-EvidentFoto InstitutRotterdam, The NetherlandsIkon GalleryBirmingham, UKSorak International Art BiennaleSorak International Art BiennaleSorak, South Korea1996Prospect 96Schirn KunsthalleFrankfurt, GermanyIn/Sight – African Photographers 1940 – PresentThe GuggenheimNew York NY, USA1997Die Anderen Modernen: Zeitgenossische Kunst aus Afrika, Asien und LateinamerikaHaus der Kulturen der WeltBerlin, GermanyAlternating Currents – as part of "Trades Routes: History and Geography – AfricusThe 2nd Johannesburg BiennaleJohannesburg, South Africadocumenta XFridericianumKassel, Germany1998Accrochage – Part IIThomas Erben GalleryNew York NY, USATransatlanticoCentro Atlantico de Arte ModernoLas Palmas de Gran Canaria, SpainAfromedi@rtKunsthalle KremsKrems an der Donau, AustriaInterferenceAfrican Art Museum of Ifan Cheikh Anta DiopDakar, SenegalDAK'ART 98 – Biennial of Contemporary African ArtAfrican Art Museum of Ifan Cheikh Anta DiopDakar, Senegal1999Summer Gallery ShowThomas Erben GalleryNew York NY, USALaboratoriumMuseum voor FotografieAntwerp, Belgium2000Intelligence – 1st Tate Triennial of Contemporary British ArtTate Britain London, UKMirror – as part of "Voila – le Monde dans la Tete"Musée d'Art Moderne de ParisParis, FranceMission FinlandHelsinki Art MuseumHelsinki, FinlandBodies of ResistanceReal Art WaysHartford CT, USAMostra Africana de Arte ContemporâneaSESC PompeiaSão Paulo, BrazilSouth Meets WestKunsthalle BernBern, Switzerland2001The Short CenturyMuseum of Contemporary ArtChicago IL, USAHouse of World Cultures Martin-Gropius-BauBerlin, GermanyMuseum Villa Stuck Munich, GermanyAnimationsMoMA PS1Long Island City NY, USATirana Biennale 1 – EscapeNational Museum of Fine ArtsTirana, AlbaniaMega Wave: Towards a New SynthesisYokohama International Triennale of Contemporary ArtYokohama, JapanBridge the GapCCA Center for Contemporary Art KitakyushuKita-Kyushu, Japan2002The Short CenturyMoMA PS1Long Island City NY, USA2003Taipei BiennialTaipei BiennialTaipei, Taiwan, Republic of China2016Après Eden: The Walther CollectionLa Maison RougeParis, France202125 yearsThomas Erben GalleryNew York NY, USA2022Shifting Dialogues Photography from The Walther CollectionK21Düsseldorf, Germany2023AccrochageThomas Erben GalleryNew York NY, USA
Publications
Collections and cataloguesYearTitleDescription1989Anima Mundi: Still Life in BritainCanadian Museum of Contemporary Photography / National Gallery of Canada1993PhotofeisScottish International Festival of Photography catalogue1995Prospect 96 at Frankfurter KunstvereinExhibition catalogueSelf Evident catalogueIkon Gallery catalogueFreedomAn Amnesty International Glasgow Groups exhibition catalogue1996In/Sight African Photographers, 1940 to the PresentSolomon Guggenheim Museum exhibition catalogue1997Die Anderen ModernenHaus de Kulturen de Welt, Berlin exhibition catalogueTrade Routes: History + GeographyExhibition catalogue for 2nd Johannesburg BiennaleDocumenta XShort Guide, documenta und Museum FredricianumCrossingContemporary Art Museum, University of South Florida exhibition catalogue1999Contemporary Photographers, 3rd edition -DreamsA Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo per l'Arte event catalogue for the Venice Biennal of Visual Arts2000Mostra Africana de Arte ContemporâneaExhibition catalogue published by Associação Cultural VideobrasilMore Works about Buildings and FoodCatalogue of internet livestream, Fundição de Oeiras, Hangar K72001ARCO 02Ifema Feria de Madrid catalogues2002Taipei Biennial – Great Theatre of the WorldExhibition catalogue2003Revisitar Canarias / The Canary Islands RevisitedCollection by Government of Canary Islands
Honours, awards and nominations
Awarded the Richard Hough Prize for Photography (1992), Scotland.
Awarded the Gulbenkian Foundation Grant (1993)
Nominated for The Vincent van Gogh Biennial Award for Contemporary Art in Europe (2000)
Reviews and news
Oladélé Ajiboyé Bamgboyé (review), Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art
Interview with Oladélé A. Bamgboyé, Journal of Contemporary African Art
ART IN REVIEW; Oladele Bamgboye, NY Times
Oladélé Bamgboyé, The Unmasking, Part II and Earlier Photoworks, Time Out New York
For a few euros more | Art and design, The Guardian
Thick and thin, The Guardian
Into Africa, artnet.com Magazine
Oladélé Bamgboyé, The Unmasking, Part II, New York Arts Magazine
From, Witte de With, centrum voor hedendaagse kunst
Exhibition Histories - The Short Century, C&
Oladele Bamgboye, Artist of the Month (article), New York Contemporary Art Report
Anima Mundi (review), ETC
Documenta X - Reclaiming the political project of the avant-garde, Third Text
Moving In. Eight contemporary African artists, Flash Art International
Oladélé Ajiboyé Bamgboyé, BE Magazin
The White Aesthetic Necessitated by the 'Glasgow Miracle'
References
External links List of artist publications on WorldCat List of artist publications on Jisc Library Hub Discover