Art for art sake is one of my greatest admiration of Y.C. Grillo – Son
Two years after the death of renowned artist Yusuf Cameron Adebayo Grillo family has unveiled the Yusuf Grillo Museum on Saturday August 26th, at his residence, 28 Ogunlowo street, Ikeja, Lagos State.
The museum under the auspices of GrilloArt Limited is in honour of Nigeria’s most influential modern artists and art teachers who passed on August 23, 2021, was established by his children to preserve the legacy of their late father.
Yusuf Grillo Museum housed most of his personal collection of the works of other artists from the 1950s and memorabilia of his own life and works was unveiled by the iconic art collector and custodian, Omooba Yemisi Shyllon.
The unveiling of the museum have in attendance children of the pioneer Chairman of Lagos State Council for Arts and Culture, Mrs. Morayo Anthonio, Mrs. Bodunrin Adeyemi, Mr. Gboyega Grillo and Mr. Akin Grillo.
According to Gboyega who spoke with Lagos Panorama at the event said “the primary objective of the Yusuf Grillo Museum is to preserve the memory and the legacy of Yusuf Grillo and part of the family’s efforts to continue their father’s contributions to the development and study of fine arts even in death”.
Gboyega further explained that “I think we named it properly as a museum rather than a gallery, the primary objective making it a museum and not a gallery, is not to sell, or trade arts, it’s to preserve the memory and the legacy of Yusuf Grillo, while a gallery do more of exhibitions and business of selling art works, it’s not our primary objective and there is the GrilloArt Limited which is doing the art business and it will also be managing the museum, so GrilloArt Limited is a holding company for the museum” the young Grillo affirmed.
Y.C. Grillo Legacy As An Educator
Son of the iconic artist, Gboyega Grillo who incidentally an artist too recounted some of his legacies with Lagos Panorama, as an educator he averred that “In education he was a great educator, in art he was very intelligent, very focused, very conscientious artist, and he wasn’t motivated by income from his work, I think that’s actually his greatest success, he managed to live above the lure mammon”,
“One of his greatest legacies, is family, as a father, he was a no nonsense dad, he was humorous, he was fun, he was the kind of dad that would take the kids out and spoil them silly, if there were places of interest to go, he would take the timeout to take you on the visit. If there was a problem to solve he was the number, he would make everything fun, even learning, he made learning fun, all of us I am sure, through school, going through your homework, having revisions with him, cause he has a way of making things simple, very simple, the most complex equations he reduced it to apples and oranges before you know it make it a part of you, it’s not like you memorize it, he make you understand why this formula is like this, what makes this thing work like this and you end up with a round knowledge rather than pi R squared, he would explain what pi is and would explain why you have to use the radius and dimeter as a reference and he would explain how the formula came about, so he would teach in a way you can never forget whatever Yusuf Grillo teaches you” Gboyega Grillo highlighted the legacies of the master of masters, the pioneer of visual art in Nigeria with Lagos Panorama.
He also described his father as a very generous person but not extravagant and noted that “the family are united even after he passed, no rancor, all his children are united of purpose, we’ve mutual respect with one another. He managed to teach us how to live with one another and with other people in the most harmonious way. I think these are my biggest takeaways from his life”
Y.C. Grillo Legacy As An Artist
On his perspective about his father as an artist Gboyega said “I was born into his studio and workshop, also very interested in artistic expression, so learning everything directly or indirectly, because he’ll be working and you will be around, I could take up my own pencil or paint brush and imitate him, as a kid you naturally imitate your hero, your mentor, and I became fairly skilled at art. I remember that even in schools, secondary school and tertiary education, I always excel at arts, primarily because I grew up in the studio, things that undergraduate or post graduate students were learning or doing I was doing same because I have been in the environment, close to it and I have been experimenting with it ever since I was even in secondary school. I have always been surrounded by older artists, even the students that used to come and work with him on IT and projects were all older than I am, but I would rolled with them and would pick up those things ahead of my mates. It’s been a great inspiration, he’s been my greatest teacher in art and into adulthood I have come to be able to actually seat down and study, especially painting, the commissions weren’t as intimate as paintings, painting I think is one of the most intimate form of artistic expression.
His manner, his style, his inspiration is real, he’s always a someone who would admonish you to be your true self. Many young artists who are skilled in drawing and painting would think of imitating great artists just because they think is the style or manner that the great artist uses that everybody like, so I want my paintings to sell so let paint like Kolade Oshinowo, for my paint to sell let paint like Bruce Onobrakpeya, if I want to sculpt let me sculpt like Bisi Fakeye or Ben Osawe but your true self is something that will endure, when you find out that you’re painting like somebody or sculpting like someone and it doesn’t seem to be working out, it’s because you’re not been true to yourself. If you’re true to yourself whether you actually sell your art or you don’t sell your art you’ll fulfilled, you’ll be satisfied and happy, even when nobody buy your art you’ll be happy because it’s true to you, you love doing it, so art for art sake is one of my greatest admiration of Y.C. Grillo. Just the honest true, the honest true is to your brush, to your paint, to your canvas, your clay, whatever it’s you’re doing just be truth to it, sooner or later by the grace of God the world will come to understand the method to your madness and appreciate you for it. You’ll be amazed at the way people struggle to collect your work, enter your studio to associate with you because you’ve proved yourself to be a true artist, believe me people recognize true artists” Gboyega Grillo affirmed.
Biography: Prof Yusuf Cameron Adebayo Grillo
Prof Yusuf Cameron Grillo was born in 1934 in the Brazilian quarters of Lagos, Grillo was a Contemporary Nigerian artist celebrated for his innovative and inventive techniques in the different forms of art he practiced. He was a master sculptor, stained glass artist and most widely recognized as a painter of distinct and uncommon style.
He was the founding president of the Society of Nigerian Artists and very actively contributed to FESTAC 77 along with many other contemporary artists of his day. He also served as the director of the Lagos State Council for Arts and Culture in the 1970s.
Grillo is considered to have been one of Nigeria’s outstanding academically trained painters; he emerged to prominence and international recognition in the 1960s and 1970s, while exhibiting a large collection of his early works. He makes use of his western art training in many of his paintings, combining western art techniques with traditional Yoruba sculpture characteristics. His preference for color blue in natural settings paintings is sometimes similar to the adire or resist-dye textiles used in Nigeria. He was the pioneer Head of the Department of Art and Printing at Yaba College of Technology from the mid-1960s till his retirement in 1987.
Grillo had his tertiary training in the arts at the Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology, Zaria, where he was a member of the Zaria Arts Society, otherwise known as the ‘Zaria Rebels’. They were famous for their artistic philosophy known as natural synthesis, which promoted Nigerian national identity through a hybrid form combining indigenous artistic styles with westernized artistic expressions. Subsequently, Grillo studied at other schools in England, Germany and the United States of America. He unified his training in the western representational style focused on Nigeria’s cultural history and artistic imagery.
Born in 1934 in the Brazilian quarters of Lagos, Grillo was a contemporary Nigerian artist celebrated for his innovative and inventive techniques in the different forms of art he practiced. He was a master sculptor, stained glass artist and most widely recognized as a painter of distinct and uncommon style.
He was the founding president of the Society of Nigerian Artists and very actively contributed to FESTAC 77 along with many other contemporary artists of his day. He also served as the director of the Lagos State Council for Arts and Culture in the 70s.
Grillo is considered to have been one of Nigeria’s outstanding academically trained painters; he emerged to prominence and international recognition in the 1960s and 1970s, while exhibiting a large collection of his early works. He makes use of his western art training in many of his paintings, combining western art techniques with traditional Yoruba sculpture characteristics. His preference for colour blue in natural setting’s paintings is sometimes similar to the adire or resist-dye textiles used in Nigeria.
He was the pioneer Head of the Department of Art and Printing at Yaba College of Technology from the mid-1960s till his retirement in 1987.
Grillo had his tertiary training in the arts at the Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology, Zaria, where he was a member of the Zaria Arts Society, otherwise known as the ‘Zaria Rebels’.
The ‘Zaria rebels’ were famous for their artistic philosophy known as natural synthesis, which promoted Nigerian national identity through a hybrid form combining indigenous artistic styles with westernized artistic expressions.
Subsequently, Grillo studied at other schools in England, Germany and the United States of America. He unified his training in the western representational style focused on Nigeria’s cultural history and artistic imagery.
