Adejoke Tugbiyele

Adejoke Aderonke Tugbiyele (born December 4, 1977) is a Nigerian-American artist and activist. She works in many types of art, such as sculpture, performance, filmmaking, painting, drawing, and textiles. Her art focuses on human rights, the rights of LGBTQ people, and women’s rights. She currently lives in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

 Biography 
Adejoke Aderonke Tugbiyele was born December 4, 1977, in Brooklyn, New York City, New York. At the age of four, she moved with her family to Lagos, Nigeria and lived there until she was 11. In high school, she returned to New York City to attend the High School of Art and Design. She is queer.

 Education 
Tugbiyele earned a B.S. degree in architecture in 2002 from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. She also earned an M.F.A. in sculpture in 2013 from the Rinehart School of Sculpture at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA).

 Organizational affiliation 
Tugbiyele has been affiliated with the Nigerian NGO, Initiative for Equal Rights which provides emergency assistance to LGBT Nigerians. She has served as a United States-based representative for Solidarity Alliance for Human Rights, a coalition of Nigerian organizations working for human rights, queer rights and activism, and to fight against HIV/AIDS. She is also a juror and mentor for an organization that supports queer artists in Nigeria called Queer Artists Fund.

 Artistic career 
Tugbiyele's work has been influenced by artists including El Anatsui, Fela Kuti, Ai Weiwei, Kara Walker, Zanele Muholi, and Rotimi Fani-Kayode.

Her work is in various public museum collections, including the Brooklyn Museum, and Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw.

 Awards 

 2024: Joan Mitchell Center Artist Residency in New Orleans 
 2019: Prix Lieridon Grand Prize
 2016: Joan Mitchell Painters and Sculptors Grant

 External links 
Adejoke Tugbiyele on Instagram

 References