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Overview
'The body is a great conductor and storyteller. So, focusing my art around it makes perfect sense.’
—Tunji Adeniyi-JonesIn Love Ritual, Tunji Adeniyi-Jones’ recumbent sitters twist their heads toward the viewer as their bodies remain nonchalantly turned away, interlaced in a loving embrace. Like many of Adeniyi-Jones’ painted protagonists, the couple is portrayed in an abstract, leafy setting, consumed by a flurry of intense hues. Here, the host of shades departs from a deep blue — an enthralling oceanic hue that likens the two figures’ lethargic silhouettes to that of mermaids, and the floating leaves surrounding them to wild sea algae. Born in the United Kingdom in 1992, Adeniyi-Jones completed his BFA at the University of Oxford’s Ruskin School of Art in 2014 before moving to the United States, and pursuing an MFA at Yale University. Finding inspiration in West African history and mythology, as well as Chinua Achebe’s writings and his own Yoruban heritage, the artist creates unknowable, palimpsestic paintings that evoke themes of displacement and diasporic identity, propelled in fictional realms that captivate the viewer in their surreal, mostly ethereal nature. For his poetic inclusion of colourful foliage and his layering of various visual elements, the artist has been compared to his master predecessor Henri Matisse, whilst his stylised renderings of semi-abstract Black silhouettes are equally reminiscent of another painter subliming Black figures: Chris Ofili.The Big Blue
Painted in 2019, Love Ritual is an enthralling example of Adeniyi-Jones’ ability to draw his viewers in, creating all-consuming atmospheres that are meant to be experienced rather than simply seen. The artist’s dense layering of colours and use of flowering patterns suggest the idea of compositional painterly space as a decorative realm to fill with otherworldly natural phenomena. Rendered with intensely pigmented oil paint, Love Ritual furthermore attests to the power of a colour — and specifically the poignancy of monochromatic blue backgrounds, which, in art history, and in specific renderings of lovers in embrace, have come to be understood as the emotional personification of the featured characters’ internal meanderings. Pablo Picasso’s Self-Portrait of 1906 is a good example of this, presenting the artist as a solemn, perhaps even melancholic character, while Marc Chagall’s Lovers in Blue, directly comparable to the present work, equally brings to the fore the element of isolation and intimacy that surrounds the interlaced couple, sheltering them in a bubble of sorts. In Love Ritual, the two figures are similarly protected from external presence, both self-possessed and absorbed in their own world, consumed to the point of rendering their surroundings entirely abstract.
Marc Chagall, Lovers in Blue, 1914, oil on cardboard, Private Collection. Image: Scala, Florence. © ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2021. Tunji Adeniyi-Jones In Conversation
Adeniyi-Jones uses figurative painting as a means to explore West African history and its associated mythology. Adeniyi-Jones renders colourful and vibrant bodies that are larger than life, taking inspiration from both his Yoruba heritage and his British upbringing.
Destinee Ross: Why do you think you are an artist?
Tunji Adeniyi-Jones: I’ve always known that I would dedicate my life to the creative arts in some shape or form. I was a very keen and studious musician when I was younger, and I was completely obsessed with drawing. I think it was really important to have the support of my parents and school faculty during these formative years. That encouragement and reinforcement were so crucial.
DR: How would you describe the type of work you do?
TA-J: I definitely strive to make paintings that are bold and authoritative. I like to use colour, line and form as my tools to achieve this.
DR: You find inspiration for your figurative paintings in West African history and mythology , as well as your Yoruba heritage. How can one see this in your art?
TA-J: The figures depicted in my paintings are very alluring and striking. Many of their poses invoke a sense of performance or dance. There are thousands of different dialects spoken across West Africa but one of the most unifying languages is communicated through the body. This language of dance and performance transcends all cultural boundaries and my intention is to charge the bodies in my paintings with this same vigour. Equally, one of the most impressive characteristics of any West African sculpture is the physical presence held by each object. Whether life-size or miniature, these sculptures convey a memorable sense of personality and spirit. So my hope is to translate a similar sense of physicality through my work.
Read the rest of the interview here.
Provenance
Nicelle Beauchene Gallery, New York
Acquired from the above by the present owner
6
Love Ritual
oil on canvas
160.7 x 190.5 cm (63 1/4 x 75 in.)
Painted in 2019.
Estimate
£30,000 - 40,000 ‡♠
Sold for £151,200
Rosanna Widén
Senior Specialist, Head of Evening Sale
+ 44 20 7318 4060
rwiden@phillips.com
Olivia Thornton
Head of 20th Century & Contemporary Art, Europe
+ 44 20 7318 4099
othornton@phillips.com
20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale
London Auction 15 April 2021
1
Joy Labinjo
Untitled
Estimate £20,000 - 30,000 ‡♠
Sold for £69,300
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2
Lina Iris Viktor
Constellations III
Estimate £30,000 - 50,000 ‡♠
Sold for £195,300
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3
This lot is no longer available.
4
Avery Singer
Untitled
Estimate £150,000 - 200,000 ‡
Sold for £466,200
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5
Toyin Ojih Odutola
LTS IV
Estimate £100,000 - 150,000 ‡
Sold for £378,000
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6
Tunji Adeniyi-Jones
Love Ritual
Estimate £30,000 - 40,000 ‡♠
Sold for £151,200
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7
Jordan Casteel
Quinn
Estimate £150,000 - 200,000 ‡
Sold for £233,100
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8
Mickalene Thomas
Clarivel Right
Estimate £220,000 - 350,000 ‡
Sold for £315,000
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9
Matthew Wong
Two Women
Estimate £350,000 - 450,000 ‡
Sold for £954,200
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10
Alberto Giacometti
Nu debout II
Estimate £800,000 - 1,200,000 ‡
Sold for £1,813,300
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11
Jean Dubuffet
La féconde journée
Estimate £1,500,000 - 2,000,000 ‡♠
Sold for £4,378,500
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12
François-Xavier Lalanne
Chouette de Tourtour
Estimate £350,000 - 450,000 Ω♠
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13
Frank Stella
Scramble: Ascending Spectrum / Ascending Green Values
Estimate £2,000,000 - 3,000,000 ‡
Sold for £2,866,000
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14
El Anatsui
Plot a Plan IV
Estimate £650,000 - 850,000 ‡
Sold for £942,100
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15
Mark Rothko
Untitled (Black Blue Painting)
Estimate £2,500,000 - 3,500,000 ‡
Sold for £2,866,000
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16
Lucas Arruda
Untitled
Estimate £60,000 - 80,000 ‡
Sold for £170,100
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17
Andy Warhol
One Grey / Black Marilyn (Reversal Series) II-50-160
Estimate £700,000 - 900,000
Sold for £733,650
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18
Marcel Duchamp
L.H.O.O.Q.
Estimate £200,000 - 300,000 ‡♠
Sold for £491,400
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19
Grayson Perry
Me Wanking Off
Estimate £120,000 - 180,000 ♠
Sold for £126,000
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20
Banksy
Love is in the Air
Estimate £400,000 - 600,000 ‡♠
Sold for £441,000
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21
Banksy
Gas Mask Boy
Estimate £1,800,000 - 2,500,000 ‡♠
Sold for £2,200,500
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22
Marino Marini
Piccolo cavaliere
Estimate £300,000 - 400,000 ‡♠
Sold for £352,800
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23
This lot is no longer available.
24
Paula Rego
The Aunt (Nada)
Estimate £800,000 - 1,200,000 ♠
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25
Ed Ruscha
Oxides
Estimate £300,000 - 400,000 ‡
Sold for £748,500
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26
Mark Tansey
Study for Nocturne
Estimate £600,000 - 800,000 ‡
Sold for £748,500
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27
John Currin
Girl in Bed
Estimate £450,000 - 650,000 ‡
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28
Josef Albers
Study for Homage to the Square: Hard, Softer, Soft Edge
Estimate £200,000 - 300,000 ‡
Sold for £327,600
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29
John Chamberlain
Gris Gris Gumbo Ya Ya
Estimate £400,000 - 600,000 ‡
Sold for £478,800
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30
Carmen Herrera
Aquila Verde
Estimate £450,000 - 650,000 ‡
Sold for £724,300
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31
Günther Förg
Untitled
Estimate £380,000 - 450,000 ‡♠
Sold for £516,600
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32
Albert Oehlen
Untitled
Estimate £150,000 - 200,000 ‡♠
Sold for £415,800
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33
Gilbert & George
Dusty Corners No. 8
Estimate £250,000 - 350,000 ‡♠
Sold for £252,000
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34
Tracey Emin
Our Angels
Estimate £200,000 - 300,000 ‡♠
Sold for £226,800
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35
Cory Arcangel
Photoshop CS: 110 by 72 inches, 300 DPI, RGB, square pixels, default gradient "Spectrum", mousedown y=9900 x=3450, mouseup y=990 x=21450
Estimate £100,000 - 150,000
Sold for £245,700
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