A CONCEPT TOUR BRINGS AWARD-WINNING ARTIST LAOLU SENBANJO TO NIGERIA
Brooklyn-based Nigerianborn performance and visual artist, Laolu Senbanjo, has toured Lagos and Abuja between September 24 to 29. The tour, which was dubbed a “concept tour," featured a series of co-created art experiences and events celebrating the launch of a new Belvedere Vodka bottle among other activities.
The ebony-complexioned artist, whose canvas main artistic is the skin, has recently made waves with his bodypainting featured in Beyoncé's Grammy Award-winning visual album, Lemonade. Not only has he graced the cover of the Washington Post, he had also featured in The New York Times, The Guardian, Vogue, BBC, CNN and NBC. Besides Beyoncé, he has also collaborated with celebrities like Alicia Keys, Swiss Beatz, Seun Kuti, Tony Allen, Alek Wek, and Danielle Brooks.
Senbanjo has designed a stunning limited-edition bottle, which was unveiled during the series of events in Nigeria. The highly-acclaimed artist applies his mantra, “Everything Is My Canvas”, to mural designs, fashion partnerships, live art events and installations, and now to the new limited-edition Belvedere Vodka bottle.
The first Belvedere bottle with highquality full-wrap sleeve technology features a flowing design with sharp edges that represent the water and rye working together to produce dimension and taste. Subtle skin-sense texture, which reacts to UV lights, is used to bring another sensory component to the bottle. The charcoal colouring and distinct shapes create complex, story-rich designs, which draw heavily from his Yoruba heritage.
With an artistic vision to reveal the beauty within each of his subjects, the new limited-edition bottle visually brings to life Laolu's interpretation of the complexity, nuance and character of the Belvedere liquid.
"When Laolu paints a subject, each design is unique to what he believes depicts their inner beauty,” Belvedere Vodka’s President, Rodney Williams, said. “This phenomenal message is seamlessly in line with our mission to reveal the unexpected beauty in life.
"Also, as a social advocate and former human rights attorney, Laolu's philosophies align with our commitment to community and creating positive action in the world; in this case, the programme supports the (RED) organisation and the Global Fund to fight HIV/AIDS in Africa, a cause we've been supporting for eight years.”
Said Sebanjo, “As an artist I get to share my soul with people around me, my environment and the world and I'm able to channel my experiences like my journey as a human rights attorney and as a Nigerian.
“The Belvedere bottle design came from that inspiration as well as doing a lot of research about what Belvedere is at its core, like the rye and the pristine water. The bottle is an amazing blend of my art and bringing to life what Belvedere stands for – and I get to be a part of giving back to society, which means a lot to me.”