Fasuyi: Collective Art Exhibition Will Create Memories, Boost Nation’s GDP

CEO, Tim and Carol Gallery of Art, Mr. Olawale Fasuyi, a passionate art curator, speaks about the importance of the forthcoming art exhibition in Ikeja, Lagos, that will showcase different art works from November 16-29, 2025. Excerpts:

You are planning an art exhibition in Lagos themed: ‘A Promise of Memories’. What exactly is the inspiration behind the theme?

The theme is to elicit nostalgia in the artists and basically for them to reflect on where they were in the artistic carriers and infusing those memories into where they are today in their current styles and works.

The show brings together diverse artistic proficiencies—from Dr. Adeola Balogun’s metalwork to Prince Saheed Adelakun’s threadwork. How did the curatorial team harmonize such varied mediums and styles to create a coherent visual narrative?

Most of the artists are well known to the gallery. We know their capabilities, styles and talents. Some are painters, some sculptors, others ceramists and printmakers. Fusing their strength together to become one major unit was quite easy for the gallery

With the exhibition’s “nostalgic, socio-cultural lens,” what particular aspects of shared cultural memory are being preserved, celebrated, or re-examined in a fast-evolving Nigerian context?

More like diverse cultural memories as we have artists from different tribal, cultural and traditional backgrounds. The responsibility of the galley is to fuse these energies and orientations together.

There is a deliberate dialogue between art masters and contemporary creators in this show. What emotional or conceptual takeaway do you hope viewers experience from this intergenerational exchange?

The aim is to show a generational approach to art creation. We have the veterans and also the upcoming artist exhibiting together. The younger artists can draw from the experience of their seniors in the trade. This makes them mature quicker and better.

After the two-week run, what shifts in discourse or appreciation do you hope the exhibition will spark within the Nigerian art scene?

The intention is for the audience to buy a piece of this memory so it continually reminds them of the exhibition where they acquired the work(s). Additionally, the visual experience gathered during the exhibition, should linger memory of those who are unable to acquire any of the works for some time

How does this time-bound exhibition support your gallery’s long-term role as a cultural custodian?

Our gallery like other galleries and museums are indeed custodians of culture. We hope to continue to perform this role into the future by showcasing works of arts with significant cultural values so that the present and upcoming generations can stay glued to their cultural realities.

The gallery is named after Pa Timothy Fasuyi and his wife, Carol. How does Pa Fasuyi’s legacy as an art educator, informed your gallery mission today?

Coining the name of the gallery out of the names of my parents came very naturally. My interest in arts was influenced greatly by my father’s pedigree in art, from my very early age. It is simply giving honour to whom honour is due

You mentioned adopting schools for mentorship. Is this connected to your SDG goals?

Investing in schools and the community, helps to nurture young talents, provides access to professional guidance, encourages community engagement, promotes continuity and creates a sustainable art ecosystem. Achieving all these for us is more satisfying than our commercial successes

When curating a group show, what factors, such as technical skill, storytelling, cultural relevance, or commercial appeal, guide the final selection of artworks?

The basic criteria are cultural relevance, representation and diversity, local resonance and commercial appeal.

You represent both established and emerging artists. What criteria do you use to discover, select, and support new talent beyond offering them exhibition space?

Basically, our desire to support new talent is dependent on certain criteria we find in them, including but not limited to conceptual depth, technical and material sensitivity, authenticity, relevance and timeliness of works and professionalism. We offer them sponsorship, access to research resources, grants, awards and commissions.

You aspire to become the leading art gallery in Nigeria. What milestones will define that leadership in the next five years?

The three major milestones that will define our existence in the medium to long term are curatorial identity and mission clarity, quality of artists featured, digital footprint and media recognition.

You’ve described the Nigerian art market as the fulcrum of your work, with a wider Afro-African focus. How do you balance showcasing Nigerian masters while engaging with global contemporary art movements?

Art has become global. Compartmentalizing it is just for convenience. We strive to be only a global player.

What strategies are you adopting to attract corporate collectors and to position Nigerian art in major institutional spaces, locally and globally?

To attract corporate brands and clients, boils down to the positioning of the gallery brand. After this, cultivating relationships with key decision makers of identified corporate players is essential towards selling tailored corporate services, commissioned works, embellishing their establishment with suitable and timeless pieces etc.,

With challenges like inflation and currency devaluation in Nigeria, how has the gallery’s pricing strategy, sales volume, or operations been affected?

Like every other sector of the economy, the art industry has witnessed a fair share of economic shocks due to currency devaluation and inflation. During periods like this, entities and families are in survival modes and spend mostly on what they consider as necessities. They tend to downplay the acquisition of luxury items like arts

What role do local and international auction houses play in shaping the value of your represented artists, and are they competitors, collaborators, or both?

International auction houses play very important roles in shaping the local art economy in a variety of ways. They help in the area of price benchmarking of our artists’ works; they help define perceived market value. They also help in validation the works of artists and expose them to international audiences

In your perspective, what is the most pressing challenge facing the Nigerian art ecosystem

How is the gallery leveraging digital platforms—such as virtual viewing rooms, social media, and e-commerce—to connect with international audiences and the Nigerian diaspora?

Our basic strategy is to develop a digital strategy rooted in curatorial identity, by using our website as a curatorial space. We are also crating a robust online viewing room and enhancing our social media platforms.

In your perspective, what is the most pressing challenge facing the Nigerian art ecosystem today, and what steps is Tim and Carol Gallery taking to address it?

The major problems facing the Nigerian art ecosystem are funding and financial support, institutional and infrastructural support, market access and visibility. This can be overcomed by strengthening public policy on art, improves public and private funding, building of more infrastructure (galleries, museums) improved art educational programmes to enhance professional art training.

You said art and culture could dramatically increase Nigeria’s GDP. What key policy changes or infrastructures do you think are needed to unlock this potential?

Art is so strong that it can directly improve a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) through cultural tourism, export of cultural goods and intellectual property economic, employment and skills development, creative entrepreneurship etc. indices of this add to a healthy GDP.

You transitioned from banking into the art world. What moment or insight motivated that leap, and how has your financial background influenced your approach to running the gallery?

The art business is a very expensive and demanding business to run. The resources

to build or to lease the space and acquire choice art works to set up a gallery, are quite humongous. Therefore only corporates or individuals with deep pockets can sustain this kind of business. We thank God for personal resources that has enabled us to continue the sustenance of the business

Reflecting on your journey so far, what is one lesson about running an art space you wish you knew when starting out?

The learning curve has been an interesting one. A lot of patience is needed in this trade as revenue and sales are not guaranteed at all times. Building a customer base can also be very challenging as in most cases we deal with new converts and have to cultivate them to be able to sustain them. We are building a capable team to be able to attend to the needs of our client base.

Looking ahead, what should we expect from Tim and Carol Gallery in the next five years?

In the next five years, we hope to have consolidated our trade to serve the needs of our diverse clientele. Next step would be to expand to other interesting areas where we can service the art audience even better.

In just three words, how would you describe Tim and Carol Gallery to a prospective collector?

Tim and Carol in three words- Authentic! African! Art!