After graduating from Pratt, Fani-Kayode returned to the UK,
sexuality, racism,
colonialism and the tensions and conflicts between his homosexuality and his Yoruba upbringing. His relationship with the Yoruba religion began with his parents. Fani-Kayode stated that his parents were devotees of
Ifa, the oracle
orisha, and keepers of Yoruba shrines, His goal was to communicate with the audience's unconscious mind and to combine Yoruba and Western ideals (specifically Christianity), fusing aesthetic and religious eroticism. Describing his art as "Black, African, homosexual photography", Fani-Kayode and many others considered him to be an outsider and a depiction of
diaspora. He believed that due to this depiction of himself, it helped shape his work as a photographer. In interviews, he spoke on his experience of being an outsider in terms of the
African diaspora. His exile from Nigeria at an early age affected his sense of wholeness. He experienced feeling as if he had "very little to lose".
Yoruba Influences In "Sonponnoi" (1987), there is a headless black figure, decorated in white and black spots, holding three burning candles on his groin. Sonponnoi is one of the most powerful orishas in the Yoruba
pantheon; he is the god of
smallpox. Fani-Kayode adorned the figure with spots to represent a Sonponnoi's smallpox and Yoruba
tribal marks. The triple-burning candle on his groin evokes the sense that sexuality continues even in sickness/otherness. It also represents how the Christian faith replaced the Yoruba tradition while also bringing disease with it during
colonialism. Speaking on Esu, he insists: "Eshu presides here [...] He is
the Trickster, the Lord of the Crossroads (mediator between the genders), sometimes changing the signposts to lead us astray [...] It is perhaps through that rebirth will occur." Esu also appears in Fani-Kayode's photography,
Nothing to Lose IX. The presence of Esu is understood in the colouring of the mask; using white, red, and black stripes the mask stands as a representation of the deity Esu. Although these colours symbolise Esu, the mask itself has no precedence in traditional
African mask-making; this subtle theme is almost flattening the mask to represent an overarching "African-ness" (a critique of the notion of "primitiveness" that was widely digested by a European audience). Fani-Kayode's "Bronze Head" (1987) shows a cropped figure's black body that reveals his legs and butt as he is about to sit on top of a bronze
Ife sculpture. The Ife sculpture is placed on a round platter, stool, or pedestal, and is placed strategically at the centre of the picture frame. Typically, the bronze head in the photograph is meant to honour the Ife king. However, in the context of Fani-Kayode's photograph, it satirizes the Yoruba kingship institution. The photograph represents both his exile and homosexuality, two core parts of his world. He does this through the fragmented representation of the Black male body as it relates to power, desire, and
sexuality. Fani-Kayode's work was largely displayed in intimate publications and gallery spaces. His work was primarily for the Queer community and later gained a global audience.
Notable Works •
Adebiyi •
Every Moment Counts II • Collection at the Tate ==Death==