Portrait

I Forgot You

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I forgot you

He touched me and I forgot you

You became a figment of my imagination

A nightmare in a dream that I had awoken from

A roller coaster ride that had finally come to an end

Ashes of a dead cadaver gone with the wind

Once again I saw your lies

And all my futile cries

And I forgot you

Because he touched me and he made me feel again

I remembered love

I remembered truth

I remembered what it felt like  without deciept

A man who knew what it was to be a man

And I forgot you

He lifted me up and I left you behind

And I forgot you

 

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

 

Pensive

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Pensive

I wanted to think

But I could not blink

I wanted to dream

But sleep didn’t come

I stared into open space

Tears rolled down my eyes

Like an endless river of overflow

When will it stop

How will I know

I ponder still

I tried to erase the memories to no avail

Climbing a never-ending hill

On a journey that only gets steeper

Like diving into an ocean that only gets deeper

I wanted to open a safety deposit box and lock them all up in there

Away from me, so I could move with more ease

My heart raced like horses on a track

My body became warm

Sweat buds popped on my forehead

Like steam on the lid of a hot soup pot

Defensive

My emotions are like clouds in the sky

Sometimes I wonder how I get by

Soon they will erupt into a torrential downpour

Causing floods that will sweep away all that’s in its way

Only then will I be free

Pensive

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

Hacking At My Heart

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Emotional by Nina Fabunmi, 4x3ft, Acrylic on Canvas, 2011

 

I have loved and I have lost

And I am still loving

And I will continue to love

They have come and they have gone

And they are still there

And they will continue to be there

Each one of them that I have loved and I have lost

Has hacked away at my heart

Hacked a piece of my heart away

A piece has turned into pieces

And they have hacked them away

Those whom I am still loving are hacking away at it

And are still hacking

And will continue to hack

And those who are waiting to love me still

Are holding their swords, their matchets and their hoes

Waiting to hack away at my heart

My heart is fragile but it beats still

Pumping twice the amount it was before it was hacked at

It struggles to beat but it beats still

Struggling to breathe

But it breathes still

And struggling to sustain the life in me

But I am still alive

With many more years to stay alive

And though they have hacked away at my heart

They have moulded it with beautiful curves

Defined each twist and turn on it

Moulded the bends into beautiful bends

And defined the curvature of it

And it is a beautiful heart

Beating, pumping and breathing still

Loving and giving and loving again

Loving even those to whom love has been lost to

Loving those whom still love

And waiting to love those waiting to love

Waiting to hack away at my heart

Hacking at my heart

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

Consumed By Fire

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Fire burning me up

With just one touch

He took me places

Like I had a sudden rush of blood flowing through my veins

Waking up places I never thought existed

I begged for mercy

But forgiveness was never served

I was like a patient in need of medicine

Given in bitter sweet portions

Forbidden

The savor of that which is prohibited

One touch

I was hypnotized

I left my body there for him to deal with

And my spirit was transported to a world where feelings are like ice cream on a cone

Apples were falling from the tree of life and I was eating all of them

I was dancing with sharks at the bottom of the deep blue ocean

Moving in ways that seemed like I was boneless

It was like a heat that could not be quenched

It took over me

I screamed louder and louder

But my loud cries seemed to only fire him up the more

I had no words to tell it

Completely consumed fire

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

My Sanctuary

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How could I drink from another cup whence I have found that which quenches my thirst?

How could I eat from another plate when I have one that makes me hunger no more?

Each time I walk this path, the trees unite to give me shade

My sword is sharpened, a shimmer on my blade

The birds sing to soothe my senses

Like a surreal world I see from different lenses

The wind blows and I am refreshed

But each time I have swayed from this path

I have been filled with an empty void

Hollow from that which is shallow

Hiding away from my own shadow

Lost like a needle in a haystack

Wanting and needing

I always return back to my sanctuary

You are my sanctuary

In you I have built my home, my dreams, my hopes my all

Even when you are not there, I still feel you

Like the blood that flows through my veins

Like the rhythm of my heart beat

And anytime I need you

You are just a thought away

In my head, in my heart

My sanctuary

 

Nina Fabunmi

http://www.ninafabunmi

“The Haven”…. Where I Find Peace

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“In Peace and Love” by Nina Fabunmi, oil on canvas 30×40″

You are all cordially invited to my solo art exhibition “The Haven” which will be on from Feb 16 – April 9th .

Opening reception will be on Friday Feb 19th 2016 at Atelier Gallery, Academy of Art University, 79 New Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA, 94105

My paintings capture the energetic splendor, peace and serenity of the Bay Area and the diversity of its people. I am an artist born and bred in Africa, now living and working in San Francisco. Each day I wake up in this beautiful city, I consider it a blessing, a privilege and an honor. San Francisco has become my haven thus when I see beauty and I consider it my artistic duty to capture it.
I have a Bachelors degree in Real Estate, and spent years working in Estate Management, Banking, Broadcasting and Telecommunications all in an effort to seek the fulfillment I always had. I finally retuned to my artistic skills and decided to step it up a notch by embarking on a Masters Degree in Fine Art- Painting at the Academy of Art University (AAU): a decision that positively changed my life. Each moment I spent in a classroom full of like minds, painting from a live model, a photo, plein air painting on the beautiful mountains and beaches of the Bay or just working in my studio, I consider my haven. I am now a graduate and a member of faculty at the AAU; it is an environment that gives me a sense of satisfaction. I am addicted to making art, I see things differently and each day I navigate this gorgeous city or come across an interesting person, I am always thinking of what a great painting the view in front of me will make.
My emotionally charged expressive technique is primarily derived by the use of a palette knife. I paint, paste, scratch, drip, sprinkle and splatter to build layers of texture in order to include details of an unspoken account. I sometimes include symbols and mark making as a tribute to my African Roots.

The Haven is a place, a moment, an emotion, a story, a history, a time in my art in my heart and when I am making art, I am in my safe haven.

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

 

 

Woman of Substance

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An outward expression of inner beauty, that her substance lies in that which is within her, far from what meets the eye. She is a woman of substance.

Available at West Coast leather . Please visit links for more information  http://www.westcoastleather.com

http://ninafabunmi.com/events

 

Experience Culture Through Portraiture

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Inspired by the Themes of the African Diaspora, my portraits go beyond what meets the ordinary eye by allowing my subjects to experience a culture they may have originally been a part of. I explore human origins by experimenting with adornment and tribal embellishments from several regions. I paint with a palette knife, deliberately creating texture which evokes the emotions of an unspoken account.

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

To Have And To Hold

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Woman is like a treasure unto man, a measure of success, an affirmation of fulfillment in life. In Africa, a woman is often used to measure a man’s status in society. A woman adorned with precious jewels, pampered and clothed in the finest fabric would be a confirmation that her man was well to do.

In Christianity, God advises that a man love his wife like he (God) loves his church and in turn you will have her submission.

She will devote herself to you,mind body and soul.

Nudity is seen as humility in Art history and the Renaissance period.

This piece titled “to have and to hold” shows a bare African beauty, presenting herself on a platform to the man who has won her heart. She is his, to have and to hold.

‘To Have and To Hold’ , oil on canvas, 30 x 30 inches, is currently in my solo exhibition , March 6 – April 25th at the Joyce Gordon Gallery,406 14th Street, downtown Oakland. For more information please visit http://www.joycegordongallery.com and http://ninafabunmi.com

Timid Glory

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Draped in ‘Adire’ fabric which originated from Nigeria, a place that she comes from but has never been to

Adorned in West African Beads, hair braided in yarn extensions

She reaches out to a culture that she has never experienced

She knows the roots that she has been uprooted from but she is timid for her lack of undrestanding

She has a Calabar name which means glory

She finds a way to be a part of it, though she may be an African in Diaspora

“Timid Glory” 24 x 36 inches, will be featured in my solo show titled ,”Rebirth” taking place at the Joyce Gordon Gallery , 406 14th street, downtown Oakland between Broadway and Telegraph, from March 6 – April 25th. Opening reception is on March 6, 6-9pm.
For more information please visit http://ninafabunmi.com and http://www.joycegordongallery.com