Oyeleke, Ibeleme, Eguare Celebrate Decade Of Photography
EMMANUEL Oyeleke, Aham Ibeleme and Yagazie Eguare have teamed up to celebrate a decade of excellence, growth, transformation, relevance and impact in the photography industry with a six- day- not- for- profit impact initiative called Project X.
Scheduled to run from tomorrow ( Monday) June 20 to ( Saturday) June 25, 2022, the initiative is lined up with exhibitions and workshops by the three creatives geared towards inspiring and elevating the minds of the next generation of photographers through shared experiences, structured training, and mentorship.
“We have had quite a journey since our paths crossed at the RED Media Africa powered Future Enterprise Support Scheme ( TFESS) in 2012. It has been 10 years of learning, challenges, victories, and growth. Ten years of choosing and refining our individual creative paths. Ten years of learning from the best hands in our field, and ten years of picking up creative nuances that are peculiar to each of us,” said Yagazie Eguare, Founder and Lead Creative, Gazmadu Studios.
“Now, 10 years after we each started this journey, we want to pay all of it forward. We want to give the support and boost platforms as The Future Enterprise Scheme gave us to the next generation of photography creatives.”
Yagazie is the recipient of several national and international awards including The Edwin George Prize for Photography ( 2017), The Future Awards Africa Prize for Photography ( 2017), and the HERCONOMY Woman of the Year — Photography ( 2022).
She has also launched the Gazmadu Education Platform through which she has empowered and equipped over 9,000 photographers. She is also the convener of the firstever conference for creatives tagged, ‘ The Art, Business and Creativity Conference’.
“Passing on what we have learned and supporting upcoming photographers any way that we can, has always been a priority for each of us. We all started this life- long adventure because platforms like TFESS and supportive people invested in us. We want to do that for the next generation. Individually, training the next generation is something we do, but they say two good heads are better than one. Therefore, to celebrate 10 years of growth, excellence, relevance, and impact, we have decided to come together,” said Oyeleke, dedicated photography instructor, tech enthusiast and Creative Director, EOP Studios.
The studio, which is as old as the curator’s photography career, has made marked contributions to photography, art, and commercial photography both in Nigeria and Africa, earning him recognition within the continent and beyond.
Oyeleke is a Canon ambassador and recipient of The ASFA Fashion Photographer of the year ( Africa) 2018, Fashions Finest Award for Fashion Photographer of the year ( 2019) and The Future Awards Prize for Photography ( 2018) and others.
Speaking of the event, portrait photographer and Project X co- curator, Ibeleme, said, “we are super excited about this initiative. We are beyond certain that it is going to impact not just the photography industry, but the creative industry and Nigeria as a whole.”
Ibeleme, who is the Lead Creative at Aham Ibeleme Studios, has worked with artistes such as, Wizkid, 2Baba, Falz, Tiwa Savage, Banky W, Seyi Shay, Timi Dakolo, Brymo, Di’ja, Reekado Banks, Korede Bello, Eva Alordiah, Bez Idakula to name a few.
The iinitiative is set to open with a private exhibition; an opening day, panel session, and art exhibition. Other major highlights include exclusive workshop sessions for photographers and creatives with the three curators. Participants at the event will get the opportunity to network with notable personalities in the photography industry while learning from award- winning masterminds.