# Oladélé Ajiboyé Bamgboyé

Oladélé Ajiboyé Bamgboyé (born 1963) is a Nigerian-born British artist and scientist known for his Unmasking series which innovated with early 3D technology in the 1990s.
A founding member of the Street Level Gallery in Glasgow and curator at the Cambridge Darkroom Gallery, Bamgboyé has been exhibiting internationally since the mid-1990s. In 1997, he attended documenta X, where he won international acclaim for his work Paradigm Shift: African Stories.
Currently, he is a civil servant and member of the UK Government Science & Engineering Profession.

## Early life and education

Bamgboyé was born in Odo-Eku, Nigeria in 1963 as the second of seven children to Salome and Ezra Bamgboyé. In 1975, the family emigrated to Glasgow, Scotland. After 6 years in Scotland, the family moved back to Nigeria in 1981 while he remained in Scotland to continue his studies.
In 1985, he received a Bachelors of Science in Chemical & Process Engineering (BSc) from the University of Strathclyde. He later attended the Slade School of Fine Art, graduating with a Master of Arts in Digital Media & Philosophy of Art in 1998.
Bamgboyé was awarded three residencies: International Artist in Residence Awards at the Banff Centre and ArtPace in 1992 and 1999, respectively, and the Koninkrijk der Nederlanden Artist in Residence Scholarship from the V2_Lab and Witte de Wit in 2000.

## The Unmasking series

The Unmasking series was developed and exhibited in three parts and, as noted in the Unmasking-3 Framework, was "a logical development of the artist's general inquiry into the prevalent issues of cultural ethics, the role of a future art practice, and finally making sense of the artist's interest in the intersection of technology, culture, art, philosophy and politics".
First conceptualised when Bamgboyé was at Slade in 1998, it continued during his residency at ArtPace in 2000 and finally culminated in 2001 at Witte de With. Utilising cutting edge technology for the era, Bamgboyé tested the boundaries of art ownership and commodification by scanning artefacts held in museums and notably the Queen Mother Head, a 16th-century bronze sculpture from Benin, Nigeria, held by the British Museum.
He developed the series with scholars, computer programmers and scientists, publishing the Unmasking 3 Framework with coauthors David England and Ming Tai. Unmasking 3, as a research project and framework, was a joint collaboration with the Foundation for Creative Technology and V2_.
As a lecturer at Bridge the Gap, he focused on his interest in quantum physics and its potential applications in his Unmasking series, the influence of which can be seen in his Yokohama installation of Unmasking-3.

## Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions :
| Year | Exhibition | Gallery | Location |
| 1985 | Photographs | Glasgow School of Art | Glasgow, Scotland |
| 1989 | ANIMA MUNDI: Still Life in Britain | The Stills Gallery | Edinburgh, Scotland |
| 1989 | ANIMA MUNDI: Still Life in Britain | Maison de la Culture Parc Frontenac | Montreal, Canada |
| 1992 | Five Big Images | Kiek In de Kok | Tallinn, Estonia |
| 1995 | Well Without End | Künstlerhaus Bethanien Studio II | Berlin, Germany |
| 1998 | The Unmasking, Part I | Slade College of Art UCL | London, UK |
| 1998 | Movements | Städtische Galerie Bremen | Bremen, Germany |
| 1998 | Oladele Ajiboye Bamgboyé | Gallery One, Culturgest | Lisbon, Portugal |
| 1999 | Unmasking Part 2 | ArtPace | San Antonio TX, USA |
| 2000 | The Unmasking, Part II | Thomas Erben Gallery | New York NY, USA |
| 2000 | Strangers and Paradise | Witte de With | Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| 2000 | Videoworks | Helsinki Art Museum | Helsinki, Finland |
| 2001 | Unmasking 3 | Witte de With | Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| 2002 | The Hair or the Man (1994) and Blink (2001) | Thomas Erben Gallery | New York NY, USA |
Group exhibitions :
| Year | Exhibition | Gallery | Location |
| 1986 | Nine Photographers at the Glasgow Print Studios | Glasgow Print Studio | Glasgow, Scotland |
| 1987 | New Light in Scottish Photography | The Stills Gallery | Edinburgh, Scotland |
| 1991 | The Problematics of Identity in Photography | Dazibao | Montreal, Canada |
| 1994 | Whitechapel Open | Whitechapel Gallery | London, UK |
| 1995 | Self-Evident | Foto Institut | Rotterdam, The Netherlands |
| 1995 | Self-Evident | Ikon Gallery | Birmingham, UK |
| 1995 | Sorak International Art Biennale | Sorak International Art Biennale | Sorak, South Korea |
| 1996 | Prospect 96 | Schirn Kunsthalle | Frankfurt, Germany |
| 1996 | In/Sight – African Photographers 1940 – Present | The Guggenheim | New York NY, USA |
| 1997 | Die Anderen Modernen: Zeitgenossische Kunst aus Afrika, Asien und Lateinamerika | Haus der Kulturen der Welt | Berlin, Germany |
| 1997 | Alternating Currents – as part of "Trades Routes: History and Geography – Africus | The 2nd Johannesburg Biennale | Johannesburg, South Africa |
| 1997 | documenta X | Fridericianum | Kassel, Germany |
| 1998 | Accrochage – Part II | Thomas Erben Gallery | New York NY, USA |
| 1998 | Transatlantico | Centro Atlantico de Arte Moderno | Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain |
| 1998 | Afromedi@rt | Kunsthalle Krems | Krems an der Donau, Austria |
| 1998 | Interference | African Art Museum of Ifan Cheikh Anta Diop | Dakar, Senegal |
| 1998 | DAK'ART 98 – Biennial of Contemporary African Art | African Art Museum of Ifan Cheikh Anta Diop | Dakar, Senegal |
| 1999 | Summer Gallery Show | Thomas Erben Gallery | New York NY, USA |
| 1999 | Laboratorium | Museum voor Fotografie | Antwerp, Belgium |
| 2000 | Intelligence – 1st Tate Triennial of Contemporary British Art | Tate Britain | London, UK |
| 2000 | Mirror – as part of "Voila – le Monde dans la Tete" | Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris | Paris, France |
| 2000 | Mission Finland | Helsinki Art Museum | Helsinki, Finland |
| 2000 | Bodies of Resistance | Real Art Ways | Hartford CT, USA |
| 2000 | Mostra Africana de Arte Contemporânea | SESC Pompeia | São Paulo, Brazil |
| 2000 | South Meets West | Kunsthalle Bern | Bern, Switzerland |
| 2001 | The Short Century | Museum of Contemporary Art | Chicago IL, USA |
| 2001 | The Short Century | House of World Cultures Martin-Gropius-Bau | Berlin, Germany |
| 2001 | The Short Century | Museum Villa Stuck | Munich, Germany |
| 2001 | Animations | MoMA PS1 | Long Island City NY, USA |
| 2001 | Tirana Biennale 1 – Escape | National Museum of Fine Arts | Tirana, Albania |
| 2001 | Mega Wave: Towards a New Synthesis | Yokohama International Triennale of Contemporary Art | Yokohama, Japan |
| 2001 | Bridge the Gap | CCA Center for Contemporary Art Kitakyushu | Kita-Kyushu, Japan |
| 2002 | The Short Century | MoMA PS1 | Long Island City NY, USA |
| 2003 | Taipei Biennial | Taipei Biennial | Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China |
| 2016 | Après Eden: The Walther Collection | La Maison Rouge | Paris, France |
| 2021 | 25 years | Thomas Erben Gallery | New York NY, USA |
| 2022 | Shifting Dialogues Photography from The Walther Collection | K21 | Düsseldorf, Germany |
| 2023 | Accrochage | Thomas Erben Gallery | New York NY, USA |

## Publications

* Bamgboyé, Oladélé Ajiboyé (1 April 2000). Writings on Technology and Culture. Kunstinstituut Melly.
* Bamgboye, Oladele; England, David; Tai, Ming (2001). Unmasking 3-A Framework for the Interactive African Art Museum (Technical report). Retrieved 11 May 2023.
* Bamgboyé, Oladélé Ajiboyé (15 December 2000). Before & Beyond. Center for Contemporary Art, CCA Kitakyushu Kitakyushu, Japan.
Collections and catalogues :
| Year | Title | Description | ISBN |
| 1989 | Anima Mundi: Still Life in Britain | Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography / National Gallery of Canada | 978-0-88884-555-9 |
| 1993 | Photofeis | Scottish International Festival of Photography catalogue | |
| 1995 | Prospect 96 at Frankfurter Kunstverein | Exhibition catalogue | 978-3-908162-18-6, 978-3-908162-20-9 |
| 1995 | Self Evident catalogue | Ikon Gallery catalogue | |
| 1995 | Freedom | An Amnesty International Glasgow Groups exhibition catalogue | 978-1-873328-13-2 |
| 1996 | In/Sight African Photographers, 1940 to the Present | Solomon Guggenheim Museum exhibition catalogue | 978-0-8109-6895-0, 978-0-89207-169-2 |
| 1997 | Die Anderen Modernen | Haus de Kulturen de Welt, Berlin exhibition catalogue | 978-3-89466-194-6 |
| 1997 | Trade Routes: History + Geography | Exhibition catalogue for 2nd Johannesburg Biennale | 978-0-620-21522-0 |
| 1997 | Documenta X | Short Guide, documenta und Museum Fredricianum | 978-3-89322-938-3 |
| 1997 | Crossing | Contemporary Art Museum, University of South Florida exhibition catalogue | 978-1-889195-24-7 |
| 1999 | Contemporary Photographers, 3rd edition | - | 978-1-55862-190-9 |
| 1999 | Dreams | A Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo per l'Arte event catalogue for the Venice Biennal of Visual Arts | 978-88-8210-155-8 |
| 2000 | Mostra Africana de Arte Contemporânea | Exhibition catalogue published by Associação Cultural Videobrasil | |
| 2000 | More Works about Buildings and Food | Catalogue of internet livestream, Fundição de Oeiras, Hangar K7 | 978-972-98700-0-2 |
| 2001 | ARCO 02 | Ifema Feria de Madrid catalogues | 978-84-8215-202-8, 978-84-8215-203-5, 978-84-8215-201-1 |
| 2002 | Taipei Biennial – Great Theatre of the World | Exhibition catalogue | 978-957-01-2630-3 |
| 2003 | Revisitar Canarias / The Canary Islands Revisited | Collection by Government of Canary Islands | 978-84-7947-329-7, 978-84-7947-325-9 |

## Honours, awards and nominations

Awarded the Richard Hough Prize for Photography (1992), Scotland.
Awarded the Gulbenkian Foundation Grant (1993)
Nominated for The Vincent van Gogh Biennial Award for Contemporary Art in Europe (2000)

## Reviews and news

Oladélé Ajiboyé Bamgboyé (review), Nka: Journal of Contemporary African Art
Interview with Oladélé A. Bamgboyé, Journal of Contemporary African Art
ART IN REVIEW; Oladele Bamgboye, NY Times
Oladélé Bamgboyé, The Unmasking, Part II and Earlier Photoworks, Time Out New York
For a few euros more | Art and design, The Guardian
Thick and thin, The Guardian
Into Africa, artnet.com Magazine
Oladélé Bamgboyé, The Unmasking, Part II, New York Arts Magazine
From, Witte de With, centrum voor hedendaagse kunst
Exhibition Histories - The Short Century, C&
Oladele Bamgboye, Artist of the Month (article), New York Contemporary Art Report
Anima Mundi (review), ETC
Documenta X - Reclaiming the political project of the avant-garde, Third Text
Moving In. Eight contemporary African artists, Flash Art International
Oladélé Ajiboyé Bamgboyé, BE Magazin
The White Aesthetic Necessitated by the 'Glasgow Miracle'