Olaniyi Omotayo is a self-taught artist who has always had passion for drawing right from his childhood. He was born and brought up in Akure, Ondo state. His parents were not in support of his drawing habit while he was growing up because he used to mess up his notebook and textbooks with sketches and scribbles. Despite the discouragement and punishment he got from his teachers and parents, he didn't give up on his passion for art. Olaniyi started art professional at the University even tho he was reading BusinessAdministration. He did several commission pieces in order to raise fund for self upkeep and also to develop his art career while in school. He obtained his bachelor's degree in 2018 at Adekunle Ajasin University as the best graduating student in his department with a first class honours. In 2019, he moved to Lagos to pursue his art career further. He met with various artists and learned a lot from them.
He has exhibition with several galleries in the past few years. His works featured in an online group exhibition held by The Holy Art Gallery (London) in 2021. He also participated in a group exhibition titled 'Black Joy' with Tribes Art Africa Gallery in 2022. Olaniyi collaborated with an art representative called 'The Studio Worldwide' from the United States in August 2022. 'TheStudio Worldwide' flew all the way from Los Angeles to Lagos to shoot a documentary about Olaniyi's work practice and biography. He also had a show with them in October 2022. Another exhibition he also featured in is a physical group exhibition titled 'Latitude of Express' with Mitochondria Gallery (Houston, Texas).Olaniyi works with oil and acrylic on canvas. His work practice encompasses the exploration of various socio-cultural event in his environment especially those related to young black people.
His impasto skin texture stands for confidence. He does this because he believes his confidence in himself has been the only thing keeping him consistent in his passion for art. He is also a lover of texture which is one of the reasons he incorporates the impasto style in his works. He works also tend to give answers to questions like 'Who are we as a human?', 'How to we close the gap between what we want for ourselves and what the society wants for us?' and so on. He termed his style 'IMPASTOREALISM' which is the fusion of impasto and realism. This style helps him express his feelings about African art in a more distinct way and connects him better to his subjects.His aim however is to uncover the untold stories about humanity and also influence young people's mind positively through his works.
