MAXiMAJiNATioN

My exhibition, ‘MAXIMAJINATION: The Creations of an Animator’ will be exhibiting at the Stratford Circus Arts Centre from the 31st of July till September 30th 2017. ( https://goo.gl/YBeH4p ) ______________________________________ This exhibition explores the many genres & subjects I am inspired by, such as, retro Sci-Fi movies, film noir, vintage pulp cover art, Comics, & Black Culture. ______________________________________

*** PRIVATE VIEWING ***

Friday 18th August @ 7pm, I will be hosting a small private viewing at the gallery. Come down & enjoy a classy-cool evening of retro/ pop/ Black culture art, in the creations of MAXIMAJINATION.

Been a busy few weeks at the studio, so haven’t had my evenings free enough to work on this proj, but back on it tonight. Here’s what was just supposed to be a quick mid-shot character turnaround, but ended up being in-betweening & cleaned up…

Here’s pose sheet (2 of 2) for this character, Princess Ugonwa. 

More of my work here.

Here’s a finished pose sheet (1 of 2) for this character who I’ve given the name, Princess Ugonwa. 

I based her design on a traditional Nigerian/ Igbo ceremonial attire, such as the orange coral beads & headpiece. In the Igbo tongue, the name ‘Ugonwa’ literally means, ‘Eagle Child’. I really liked the power & poetry behind that, so I decided to give her a golden gauntlet as an attribute of her name & perhaps a prophesied destiny. The gauntlet, I called, ‘The Eagles Claw’, which would have mystical powers only she could wield... sort of like Thor’s hammer, ‘Mjolnir’.... but probably much stronger ;)

More of my work here.

I began working on this illustration last year after being inspired by this image I came across of super models, Nykhor Paul & Adonis Bosso... Needless to say, the phrase ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’ definitely applied. It was one image, but evoked a multitude of meanings to me. I found the photo so profound, beautiful & poetic that it was beyond words to interpret… So I did the next best thing & put pen to paper cintiq.

I’ve learnt it’s best an artist not always give his/ her own personal meaning behind their work, as in most cases it may actually deter the viewer from what they themselves saw; robing them of their own unique experience of the ‘art’ itself.

I titled this piece, ‘'Made in His Image' (Revolutionary Love)’…

FB: @MaxiMAJiNATiON   IG: @maxwell_oginni

On a Black Panther fix at the moment. Loved Civil War! Go see it ;)

                              * D A U G H T E R S  O F  G R A C E *

Here they are, finally finished... I started this illustration back at the beginning of november last year, but had to put it on hold due to the loss of my older Brother. A lot has happened between now & then, but I'm proud I have finally been able to complete it... 

I dedicate this illustration in honour to the life of my beloved Brother, Abiola Kingsley Oginni [1979 - 2015]

This illustration was inspired by an incredibly powerful image I came across on my news feed last year... A photo of a group of  women... not just any women... No, these were a Dynamic, Daring, Fierce & Bold Sisterhood of Super-heroines... with the Dopest STYLE!

"We fight for those who are told their tears don’t matter. Where the police hurt more than serve, and eating establishments are built just to shorten the lives of the community. We fight for the strong who have been stripped of their powers. We fight for the invisible."

Paola Mathe was the creative genius behind the original source of my illustration, & I love everything she's about! Here's her personal website where you can see the incredible photos that inspired me as well as links to the blogs of the other models: http://goo.gl/35zsNp

Tempted to do a few more... ;)

On the last week of November 2015, I lost someone indescribably special & influential to me...

My beloved big brother, Kingsley, Abiola, Oginni was the person behind my artistic gifts... He trained & nurtured me from as early as 11yrs old through to my teenage years. In the early 90's he would teach me how to draw, at first copying characters out of video game magazines ('Mean Machine' games mag), then later more advanced principals using 'The Marvel Way to Draw Comics' book... He would also set up a regular 'drawing club' for me & my younger brother in our bedroom where he'd provide us with paper, pencils, colours & other resources. He'd grade me & my brother out of 10, & I was always proud to get top marks from him.

Since his transition, I've been unable to work on any of my own personal projects. I didn't know what it was before, only that it was directly linked to him. I had been working on several illustrations prior to what happened, but since then I hadn't been able to bring myself to continue... I took the last few weeks to try to analyse what was going on & how I needed to deal with it. Finally it came to me... Because my brother Kingsley was so paramount to the development & cultivation of my gifts, consciously & unconsciously my art/ artistic journey & career has always been connected to him. I can only describe it as him having guided me throughout my entire growth as an artist, which had been a very intimate thing... As a result of his passing, I hadn't anticipated the reality of continuing this journey without him & the emotions it would bring up.

I've come to the acceptance now that he would want me to stay on the path (without his physical presence) & keep pressing on. So as an act of accepting his transition, I felt very strongly that before I could do anything else, I had to first honor him for all he was/ is (still) to me with this illustration.

It's been VERY emotional working on it as it brought to memory so much I love & recall about him; but at the same time I felt a peace within me that seemed to grow with each line I drew. Finally it's now completed, & I feel ready to move forward knowing I have paid this homage to him & have his blessing.

I titled this illustration, 'The Creator'.

May his Spirit rest in blissful Peace🌹

❤You Biola... Your bro, Folabi

Here’s an illustration of a young lady I saw on the train platform a week or so ago... Stood there by herself, this beautiful sista had such a radiance about her, I just wanted to capture & celebrate it. She didn’t have any military deco on her jacket, but it just seemed to work. I also had two versions of her which I liked both equally. One with short hair, one with long locks... Both represent the same statement of Natural Pride, & the love/ embracement of it.

I titled this, ‘Daughter of Alkebulan, Child of Kush’

Here’s a powerful spoken word piece that summarises my thoughts here, by K-Love The Poet, titled... ‘Million Dollar Melanin’

More of my work here.

Deborah... Judge, Prophetess, Warrior & Wife.

“And Deborah, a nebiyah (prophetess) the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Yisra’el at that time. And she was dwelling under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Beyth El in the mountains of Ephrayim. And the children of Yisra’el came up to her for right-ruling.” Judges 4 v4-5 

Representation matters...

More of my work here.

Thank you very much. I appreciate your kind words & support.

Yes there is. You can drop me an email at max(at)maximajination.com & I will reply you with further details.

Shalom

Short process vid on this rooftop chase seq: https://vimeo.com/126850670

What I started off as a rough (never intended for clean-up) animated run cycle ended up becoming this short, dramatic sequence. 'Rooftop Chase!'

Watch it in full screen, just make sure you hit the HD button! Full description of how this came about & what I plan to do with it on the video's page. I’ll try to post up a process vid also, soon.