Anadu Art Gallery

Take What You Need: The Calm Abstraction of Folakemi Olawoye

October 6, 2026

By: Chieloka Anadu

Folakemi Olawoye is the self-taught Nigerian founder of Folartsy Studio, working primarily in contemporary abstract art. Her paintings explore emotion and, at times, everyday experience, often arriving at something calm and peaceful. Flowers run throughout her practice – her signature floral stamps appear in most of her paintings, becoming one of the most recognisable elements of her work. Painting, she says, eases her stress and has always been a way “to process what I see, feel and experience,” while still leaving room for the viewer to arrive at their own meaning.

Much of her inspiration draws on emotions she has felt before – a particular expression, a feeling, a conversation, a person, or simply something she notices and can’t stop thinking about. She doesn’t always begin a painting with a clear idea of what she wants to say. Often she starts with just an image or a feeling, letting the work take shape naturally as she paints.

Olawoye’s influences have shifted across different stages of her journey. Drawn especially to colour, she points to artists like Chidinma Mordi, Kehinde Wiley, Claire Idera, and Njideka Akunyili Crosby as figures who have shaped how she thinks about colour, portraiture, identity, and representation. Being self-taught, she says, has made her particularly open to learning from a wide range of artists and styles rather than committing to one fixed path.

Materially, she works primarily with acrylic paint on canvas, drawn to its versatility – the ability to build up layers, work quickly, experiment with colour, and adjust as a painting develops. Alongside various mark-making techniques, her signature floral stamps recur throughout her work, giving each piece a recognisable thread without locking it into one fixed meaning.

When creative blocks appear, Olawoye tries not to force her way through them. She’ll step away from the canvas, looking at other artists’ work, taking photographs, revisiting things she’s saved, or simply paying closer attention to the world around her. She has learned that not every painting needs to come together immediately – sometimes a break, and a return with fresh eyes, is all it takes.

Asked what her artwork would say if it could speak, she answers: “Take what you need from me.” She resists telling a viewer exactly what to feel or see, drawn instead to the idea that two people can stand in front of the same painting and come away with entirely different experiences. For Olawoye, a painting that makes someone pause, feel something, remember something, or simply enjoy looking at it has already done something meaningful.

Participating in the Anadu Art Fair carries particular weight for Olawoye, since she’s presenting a new body of work created specifically for the occasion. Personally, it feels like a moment of growth – putting work shaped by her own experiences and ideas into a space where people can engage with it directly. Professionally, it offers a chance to introduce Folartsy to a wider audience, connect with other artists and creatives, and experience, for the first time, what it means to take part in an art fair as an exhibiting artist. She says she’s looking forward to the experience, and to seeing where it leads.

Follow Olawoye’s journey on instagram: folartsy