Megastar actress, Genevieve Nnaji is always on beat when it comes to fashion, just last weekend giving us inspiration for our green and white Democracy Day ensembles – but joining the legions of stars that have had their Hermes “Bikin” bags customised, she’s revealed a work of graffiti art on hers.
Upgraded majorly by a Nigerian artist going by the name of Dricky Stickman, the bag – revealed yesterday on Instagram – now boasts a bold profile of a woman rocking tribal markings, a shaved head and some serious hoops.
But the beauty isn’t the first to have her “Birkin” bag painted though, with stars like the Kardashians, Rita Ora and Lady Gaga having theirs remastered too. This is however, by far the best update to the designer tote we’ve laid eyes on, and it doesn’t hurt that the artwork is by an African talent, either.
And it’s not that we’re biased. In fact Mr Stickman is well-loved by many in the fashion industry, with plenty of its movers and shakers seen repping his handiwork – from Orange Culture designer Adebayo Oke-Lawal, to top model Peter Finn.
The graffiti geniu work on Genny’s Birkin has us thinking though, on whose work asides his (one day, we dream) we would love to grace our own designer bag – and here’s a little list we’ve come up with.
1. Oresegun Olumide
Remember the Lagos-born artist that broke the internet recently with his hyper-realism paintings? Yeh, Oresegun Olumide. We’d love to carry his work around too.
Though we suppose people might again mistake his beautiful artwork for real people again, and leave us looking like we’re carrying around someone’s head, as opposed to a bag with a painting of a person on it…
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2. Aboudia
Ivorian painter based in Abidjan, Aboudia is revered for his colourful creations that reflect a dark time in his life, when he was forced to take refuge in an underground studio after the escalation of political violence in his city.
The “Daloa 29” series includes people carrying weapons and “Le Couloir de la Mort” depicts skulls and child-like faces, but despite the negative experiences they reference, we’d be be happy to boast them day-to-day, because the work is simply stunning.
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3. Laolu Senbanjo
Nigerian talent Laolu Senbanjo recently hooked up with Nike to rework their Airmax range, and he’s also just worked with Queen Bey for her infamous visual album, Lemonade which featured body paintings done in his style of art, entitled “Afromysterics.”
The term, coined to mean “the mystery of the African thought pattern” explains what we’d like to see texturising our “Birkin” bag – or any bag for that matter. We love the bold colours and can imagine the cool results earned from the collision of his take on culture and cloth.
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4. Victor Ekpuk
Nigerian artist Victor Ekpuk, who’s based in Washington DC, creates everything from murals to drawings and paintings, inspired by Nigerian nsibidi graphics and writing systems, and explores themes of “family, gender, politics, culture and identity.”
We love the detailed results and their roots in Nigerian culture, and would carry them on our shoulders with pride.
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5. Kudzanai Chiurai
Remembered for his unflattering portrait of Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwean artist (now based in Johannesburg) Kudzanai Chiurai creates political paintings and works that speak of “black empowerment and urban rejuvenation”, which are just beautiful to behold.
Colourful but confronting the eye with a message for the mind, we’d love to get our hands on a piece and take it everywhere we go.
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But who are some of your favourite African artists? Tell us who’d you’d love to see customising your most treasured possession, like Dricky Stickman did Genevieve Nnaji’s “Birkin”, by tagging us in your options online @SPICETVAFRICA.
Image source: @Africanart, Artsy.net, Vogue.com, Bellanaija.com, Holaafrica.files.wordpress.com, Victorekpuk.com, Aboudiart.com
