Ayomide Tejuoso
https://ayomidetejuoso.com/
https://www.instagram.com/plantationofficial/
https://www.tiktok.com/@bitterplantains
Tejuosoayomide@gmail.com
+41782445302
Praxis Modulus, by Ayomide Tejuoso (Plantation), is interested in IFA and dialects of destruction in contemporary decadence. It is a three year body of work that will consist of sacralised images, films, paintings, texts, and sounds, centering Ayomide Tejuoso as a muse; a symbol of restlessness in modern calamity. 2026 will introduce the body of work through 50 images, 10 mixed media pieces and objects, a 5 minute film, and 3 exhibitions. Each exhibition will act as ephemeral symposiums of expressions, shaped by sound, image, material, and body– a physical entry into the creative universe.
To detail further, Praxis Modulus is an absurdist myth, a tale of “PLANTATION, PLANTATION” and the black bodies that survive in turbulence. It will consist of conceptual art portraits of black women with Sùkús sitting on white horses, and stills of Plantation with sheep on her chest and black boys with golden crucifixes. The mixed media pieces will be canvas re-imaginations of the portraits alongside plastic found objects. The film will be a 5 minute expansion of the produced images; a rhythmic transformation of the script titled “I was born with blood on my teeth, death on my lips, and sin on my tongue” (Ayomide Tejuoso, 2024). The 3 exhibitions will feature sound and performance installations made by Ayomide Tejuoso and a Yoruba folk music band. Enamored by the significance of Faaji Agba (directed by Kunle Tejuoso) and Yusuf Olatunji the exhibitions will be immersive sonic introductions to Yoruba ontologies.
3 exhibitions:
The three exhibitions will unfold as chapters exploring the Yoruba feminine disposition. Anchored by the colour blue, each exhibition will follow a consistent spatial language and structure: a blue-washed room with a large screen presenting the film; surrounding walls occupied by mixed-media works and material installations; and, at the centre, a band seated in a circle. Encircling the musicians, Ayomide Tejuoso and four women will be styled and perform alongside them in a theatrical presentation.
These exhibitions curated by Shaquille Shaniqua Joy (Living Room Sessions) , and will be realised through commissioned work by set-designer architect Charlyne Diata Sanogo, whose practice centres on spatial design, alongside stylists focused on constructing new languages of material and movement, and a movement director. Conceived as symposia-like gatherings, the spaces will function as shrines, immersive sonic environments for reflection, performance, and communion.
Praxis Modulus, by Ayomide Tejuoso (Plantation), is interested in Ifa and dialects of destruction in contemporary decadence. It is a three year body of work that will consist of sacralised images, films, paintings, texts, and sounds, centering Ayomide Tejuoso as a muse, a symbol of restlessness in modern calamity. The project asks how myth, ritual, and image making can be used to process turbulence, displacement, and the psychic residue of colonial histories in the present day. 2026 will introduce the body of work through 50 images, 10 mixed media pieces and objects, a 5 minute film, and 3 exhibitions. Each exhibition will act as an ephemeral symposium of expressions shaped by sound, image, material, and body, a physical entry into the creative universe and a communal site for reflection. Praxis Modulus is conceived as an absurdist myth, a tale of “PLANTATION, PLANTATION” and the Black bodies that survive in turbulence. It will consist of conceptual art portraits of Black women with Sùkús sitting on white horses, and stills of Plantation with sheep on her chest and Black boys with golden crucifixes. These images explore vulnerability, spectacle, sanctity, and survival. The mixed media pieces will be canvas re imaginings of the portraits alongside plastic found objects, interrogating consumption, waste, and the afterlife of materials. The film will be a 5 minute expansion of the produced images, a rhythmic transformation of the script titled “I was born with blood on my teeth, death on my lips, and sin on my tongue” (Ayomide Tejuoso, 2024). Through sound, movement, and montage, the film will extend the project’s meditation on inheritance, prophecy, and the body as archive.
The three exhibitions will feature sound and performance installations made by Ayomide Tejuoso and a Yoruba folk music band, drawing from oral traditions and improvisation. Enamoured by the significance of Faaji Agba and the work of Yusuf Olatunji, the exhibitions will be immersive sonic introductions to Yoruba ontologies for international audiences, creating a space where ancestral knowledge and contemporary art practice meet. The project aims to foster cross cultural dialogue while centering Yoruba perspectives that are often underrepresented in global art spaces. The three exhibitions will unfold as chapters exploring the Yoruba feminine disposition, including power, tenderness, rage, care, and mysticism. Anchored by the colour blue, each exhibition will follow a consistent spatial language and structure, a blue washed room with a large screen presenting the film, surrounding walls occupied by mixed media works and installations, and at the centre a band seated in a circle. Encircling the musicians, Ayomide Tejuoso and four women will be styled and perform in a theatrical presentation, activating the space through gesture, costume, and ritualised movement.
These exhibitions will be realised through commissioned work by set designer architect Charlyne Diata Sanogo, alongside stylists and a movement director focused on constructing new languages of material and movement. Conceived as symposia like gatherings, the spaces will function as shrines, immersive environments for reflection, performance, and communion. The intended result is to create a living archive of images, sounds, and performances that can travel across cities, connecting diasporic communities and inviting audiences into a contemplative encounter with Black feminine subjectivity. By doing this project, Ayomide Tejuoso seeks to challenge reductive narratives about Black womanhood, expand the visibility of experimental African art practices, and create spaces where vulnerability, spirituality, and imagination can coexist. The project will be achieved through a phased process of research, collaboration with artists and musicians, production of artworks and film, and the staging of exhibitions that prioritise accessibility, dialogue, and collective experience .
1. This project emerges from my ongoing research and practice exploring Black creative praxis, particularly through my projects Pariah (2023–ongoing) and Irregular. Pariah examines West African femininity, colonial afterlives, and contemporary nihilism through photography, text, film, and performance. Irregular is a research-based exploration of distortion, rupture, and decadence in contemporary carnage, using photographic and installation mappings of West African visual and cultural dialects to investigate Black diasporic aesthetics and art as praxis. Together, these projects form the conceptual foundation for this new work. A key moment leading to it was presenting Pariah in Geneva, where I brought Damsel Elysium to perform a sound installation alongside my own live text performance and film at Le Sputnik. That experience revealed the power of immersive, interdisciplinary environments and the need to expand this approach across cities. The project I am now seeking funding for is also inspired by the work of curators and practitioners Touching Bass, Shaquille Shaniqua Joy (Living Room Sessions), and Lafalaise Dion, who I will collaborate with as curators, alongside spatial designer Charlyne Diata Sanogo. Working with them enables a more ambitious transnational form combining exhibition, performance, and sonic ritual. Building on my previous work, this project experiments with new scales, collective processes, and Yoruba centered methodologies to explore how diasporic collaboration can reshape the experience of Black feminist narratives in contemporary art spaces.
2. I aim to create a significant cultural moment that foregrounds West African visual dialects, Yoruba ontologies, and Black feminist narratives through performance, film, and installation. I will know the project has achieved its aims through audience engagement, attendance across the exhibitions, and the depth of dialogue generated around the work. Particular attention will be given to responses from West African and diasporic communities, as well as to the preservation and visibility of Yoruba sonic traditions such as Apala and Were music within London and other host cities. Opportunities for learning and reflection are embedded throughout the project through its symposium-like exhibition format, which invites conversation, performance, and communal exchange. Collaborating with musicians, curators, and designers will also provide ongoing reflection on process, cultural translation, and accessibility. To understand the difference the project has made, I will gather feedback through audience conversations, written responses, and documentation of participation. I will also reflect critically on how effectively the project communicated Yoruba cultural frameworks and Black feminist perspectives within contemporary art contexts. The project builds on my research into Black art as praxis, including Irregular, which explores distortion, rupture, and diasporic aesthetics through photography and installation. By extending this research into a collaborative, public format, the project tests how experimental West African visual and sonic languages can resonate across international audiences and contribute to broader cultural discourse.