His work is absolutely amazing!
Dotun Popoola is a Nigerian metal sculptor making a name for himself in the art scene. Discovering his passion for turning waste into art at an early age, Popoola credits his parents for nurturing his gifts despite how destructive they were in the beginning.
“At the age of nine, my parents were sensitive enough to discover my creative ability with respect to art and [the] creation of beauty. They supported me tremendously and bought art materials for me as they noticed my enthusiasm, restiveness, and consistency…My adventure into waste exploration began as a child. I crafted cars out of used milk and tomato tins and toothpaste box[es], built sand castles…made birds, airplanes, and ships with waste papers…These creative adventures provided the basis for my creative expressions,” Popoola said on his website.
After earning his master’s degree in Fine Arts, Popoola embarked on a transformative journey in the Nigerian art scene in 2014. He was in search of a niche that could not only convey his unique identity but also align with his deep-rooted concerns. Exploring various mediums, he eventually found his calling in using scraps from junkyards and waste outlets to weld beautiful sculptures.
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Today, Dotun Popoola’s work has taken him all over Nigeria and the U.S., where he not only facilitates art workshops and showcases his large murals and sculptures but also advocates for a pressing issue of waste management and conservation. His work serves as a reminder of “the need to repurpose, recycle, and reuse the large army of wastes that make our environment unsightly and threaten the ecosystem,” instilling a sense of urgency and responsibility in all of us.
Popoola’s work has been featured in more than 100 publications, and he is passionate about giving hope and touching people through his art. His work celebrates the beauty of Blackness and conveys his personal ethos that art should operate “as an agent of change, and as a tool of sociocultural review, reengineering and protest against environmental decadence.”
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In addition to his work as an artist, Popoola mentors other local and international artists at his studio in South-West Nigeria while profiling the work of other sculptors globally who repurpose waste. Popoola is also currently building the Scrap Art Museum, an eco-friendly attraction featuring this 3D art made from recycled materials.
Cover photo: Nigerian Sculptor Dotun Popoola Is Repurposing Waste Into Sculptures, Highlighting the Beauty of Blackness/Photo Credit: @DotunDavid_Popoola/Instagram