In Taking a stanza: The relationship between photography and poetry, Rachel Segal Hamilton looks at the convoluting concourse between the two genres of art. This concourse is what Ayo Folayan, a Birmingham-based Nigerian Visual Artist, has done in his series — Woman of Colour, Gilded Roots, The Golden Resilience and Diaspora Bloom.
As the artist states, “I strive to provoke dialogue, inspire pride, and challenge global perceptions of African artistry,”Interestingly, his photography and poetry have a long-standing connection, and the pairing is enjoying renewed popularity. Through his lens, Folayan weaves poetic narratives that explore the Black experience—arranging his compositions like stanzas to interrogate empowerment, ancestral memory, and cultural erasure.”
Folayan has shown his work in the UK, Europe and Africa, including the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists (RBSA), Boomer Gallery (London), Circular Art Space (Bristol), and the Glasgow Gallery of Photography, and his work is now receiving more and more critical attention.
“His artistry is not only vivid in terms of imagery, but also merges surreal and conceptual elements to honour his diasporic legacies,” a reviewer says of his works. He encourages his audience to ‘seize the day’ (carpe diem) as each day appears the last.
In Gilded Roots, he steers a visual symphony of grandeur and legacy, celebrating Black identity that is connected to self-possession, ornamentation, and history. The dialogue between skin and accessories creates a strong contrast between melanin and earrings in each artwork. These earrings are not mere accessories but carriers of pride, strength and ancestral heritage. “This series explores tradition, regality, and the unbreakable connection between past, present, and future,” says Folayan.
In Aura of Presence, the artist challenges the perception of visibility and erasure, celebrating the richness of Black identity in contemporary visual storytelling. Light and texture create a transformative effect which turns the subjects into living embodiments of power and grace and individuality. This work is not just about what is seen but what is felt—the aura that lingers, the energy that speaks beyond words.
While in The Golden Resilience Series, Folayan explores digital automation with human artistry, where AI assisted in generating foundations, adding, “but I directed, refined, and reshaped each composition to align with my vision. The artist transformed kintsugi principles into a new interpretation, which shows fractures as powerful symbols of Black identity and cultural recovery according to his statement.
The artist uses gold to depict both physical and emotional scars in his portraits which represent survival and new beginnings. The artwork Golden Fractures uses light and textured elements with gilded details to redefine how we see difficult experiences. Through this collection, the audience can observe the process of healing and spiritual transformation and the indestructible brilliance of human nature.
His Woman of Colour presents a tribute to Blackness by showing presence and heritage and power through visual representation. The subjects use striking accessories and symbolic elements to become living art pieces which showcase their resilience and elegance and self-possession. Through his work he changes our understanding of beauty and power and cultural identity. The photographs celebrate the Black woman’s strength and the deep value of melanin and the dynamic heritage and the silent yet powerful.
The emotional power of light functions as a language throughout this series to create luminous masterpieces from deep skin tones and shadows that elevate rather than hide.
The difference in textures — smooth skin, defined embellishments, and vivid flowers — produces a captivating interaction between delicacy and power. Each aspect is deliberate: the arc of the lips, the rebellious angle of the chin, the manner in which highlights caress melanin.
The images showcase how poetry and photography collaborate artistically to reach wider audiences. The subjects present themselves as dual statements, which demand recognition while displaying the uncontainable depth of heritage.
The RBSA recognised his two series because they combined traditional ancestral narratives with modern visual elements. The RBSA Photography Prize 2025 awarded Folayan its highest recognition for his entire body of work.
Renowned art critic Anthony Fawcett praised his work, likening his black-and-white series Brotherhood to the iconic photography of Irving Penn. Fawcett said: “Ayo Folayan is a master photographer whom I had the good fortune to meet in person at London’s iconic Boomer Gallery earlier this year. He transmutes the very heart and soul of the Nigerian women/muses that my eloquent friend Ben Okri has written about in words.”
Committed to amplifying underrepresented voices, Folayan brings these timeless icons to life in a series of phosphorescent mise-en-scènes.
In Golden Resilience: A Journey Through Fractures and Rebirth, a woman stands before a shattered mirror adorned with golden decorations and floral crowns that symbolize both her strength and her vulnerability.
His series, Brotherhood: A Testament to Bond, Strength & Shared Journeys, examines the deep bonds that form between people who understand each other profoundly. The series demonstrates the fundamental elements of shared experiences, together with silent protection and unbreakable loyalty which form an unspoken bond that runs through the fabric of life.
While Crowned in Innocence: Threads of Identity represents heritage alongside purity and transformation. This collection presents the relationship between cultural traditions and personal expressions as well as the combination of traditional symbols with contemporary artistic ideas.
Each portrait tells a story about personal identity and survival and the delicate bonds which unite us to our ancestral heritage. Metal pins support beaded ornamentation which creates an atmosphere of ritualistic protection and ornamental value.
In Diaspora Bloom, he honours the African Yoruba woman wearing traditional clothing. The gleaming gele and coral beads represent more than fashion because they embody ancestral heritage and evolving identity and cultural pride.
This series captures the grace, strength, and cultural legacy carried into new landscapes. “This series is an attempt to honour the complexity of the Yoruba heritage by presenting it through a contemporary lens; all elements of the costume worn in the performance convey a story. The central subject, adorned with coral beads, a handwoven gele (traditional African headscarf) and intricate lace, is more than a mere subject – rather, she embodies a living narrative imbued with concepts such as identity, strength, and evolution.”
The incorporation of coral beads serves to signify both royalty and legacy, while the lace reflects the rich artistry of the Yoruba textile traditions. The sunshade is not an arbitrary selection; it poses a challenge to the viewer, encouraging them to contemplate heritage from a contemporary perspective and to consider how culture adapts.
The images showing the subject with the horsetail whisk (irukere) establish a regal and spiritual atmosphere which recognises the Yoruba leadership and wisdom heritage. These photographs present more than visual attractiveness because they transmit multiple cultural stories.
Through these images viewers can contemplate how traditional elements merge with modernity while heritage evolves into a dynamic living system that transforms across time.
