The Metal Creativity of Abinoro Akporode Collins
Urhobo World celebrates the artistic excellence of Abinoro Akporode Collins, a native of Agbarho, making waves with his innovative use of knives and forks to create amazing sculptures.
Abinoro attended Agbarho Grammer School before moving on to the School of Art and Design, Auchi Polytechnic in Edo State where he obtained his National Diploma (ND) in painting and general art (2009) and graduated with a Higher National Diploma (HND) in sculpture (2012) as the overall best graduating student.
Abinoro draws inspiration from his environment, depicting these experiences with his sculptures rendered in stainless steel cutlery, fire glass, and bronze. His art is a mix of both classical, realistic, and infusion of expressionism, highly conceptualized, and repurposed materials. By repurposing materials, he gave new meaning to the materials without having to allow them to be worn out or discarded. Cutlery (spoons and forks) has constantly been a medium that he has experimented with for the past 8 years. With it, he has achieved unimaginable sculptures clearly depicting mind-blowing forms and details in his work yet been able to twist his subjects to engage issues in his environment.
He recently completed a solo exhibition, Raptured. In the forward for the Exhibition booklet, Tolulope O. Sobowale (B.A., MFA, M.Phil) said:
Rapture is an extreme pleasure, happiness, or excitement. Why among some fundamental protestant eschatology, it referred to the second coming of the Christ wherein people without blemish will be taking to a place of everlasting joy and they shall not taste death.
Collins is one of the most outstanding creative minds of his alma mater, whose strength is vivid in contemporary metal sculpture in the Nigerian art scene. Since graduating seven years ago, as the best overall student from Auchi Art School, he has not relented in experimenting and exploring variant materials of which spoon, as of “now” has become a household material and a means of his visual identity in Nigerian art. The nature of his medium is unique and requires clarification. It is worthy to note that using a found object as art materials is not strange among artists globally; however, his material (found object) exploration is not of waste/junk but of “repurpose”.
As an experimental artist, he widely explored other materials of great interest to him and strives to give new meaning through them. He believes the best approach to create with such non-conventional materials is to build a connection with them so they become a viable muse to passion strong content.
He has exhibited widely within and outside Nigeria.
In 2013, he made it to the grand finale of the life in my city competition, Nigeria. In 2014 he participated in the African Art month residency and exhibition and also at the Historical Festival by Art Hub both in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Exhibited in Mississippi USA 2018. Was a guest artist in the King
Abdulazeez camel festival in Saudi Arabia along with 43 international artists in 2019. Exhibited in Rele Art Gallery Lagos in material time 2019. Exhibited in generation Y with Retro gallery Abuja Nigeria, among others.
He was recently acknowledged and featured on BBC News for his impressive art pieces created with spoons.