chiogoezubem:
Great photos. But they look more like American models, don't you think? It would have been ideal to use 'real African' models.

#MyThoughts

ChokolateBoss:


Nice one. Really wanted to see Ogun. To me, d depiction of Aganju should have been that of Ogun cos d guy who depicted Aganju looks tough n mean (suited to be a god of iron).

Where did u get d picture of Ogun? Wud like ur source pls

iduzebaba:
1. That is a wrong depiction of Sango..God of thunder fun ra e. oko Oya ati osun..... normally.. he is depicted in a red and black attire with a thor like thunder weapon and prob with a shuku braid with cowries on in head and breathin fire effect in d pics

2. I neva knew d devil has 6 packs... and that babaluaye is d founder of shoki. lols

3. if I may ask.. why was olorun tattooed.

4. u all can see dat the African goddess for beauty and love is black and beautiful.. tonto dike and family ' take note.

Oildichotomy:
What's the idea behind such depictions ?

Is it to confirm the barbarian and fetish stereotype of the African by the west or for some temporary awe by arts enthusiast.

The world is moving ahead with science that can be empirically evaluated and proved , and we are here beholding some "awe" of Orishas and Sango which exist in the metaphysical mind of some tiny ifa worshippers.

Africans sha !

CHEAPDATASOLTN:
FANTASTIC , BUT NOT AS THE LIVING GOD

chimkaire:
*gods*

johnydon22:


what is the difference between Goat and goat?

DaBullIT:


[size=14pt]
NA SO UNA DEY START !!!!

Don't use models to depict gods , "I" as a well taught yoruba prefers seeing the gods in hand crafted wooden sculpture and clay , not some coked out model

Your work is Impressive

Thank you , But NO thank you [/size]






[size=18pt][b]Exactly my point , That's how they sell it and you buy it , clearly most of the depicted gods are nude and which is why it's generated so much traffic , You didn't download the pictures because it means a lot to you , you downloaded the pictures because of the nudity

Every god in Yoruba land is decent , and Yoruba culture frowns at nudity , You'd hardly see a well trained Yoruba chick open her legs and sit down carried away while perverts peek to see the colour of her panties , Mothers take passion in teaching their girls to patonmo ,close your legs , even back then , kids as young as 5 years old would cross their legs or sag thier skirts at the middle to prevent you from seeing anything .

This is a wrong representation of Yoruba gods , One oyinbo should not come and show us how our ancestors look like or how they should look now ,


Sooner or later , images like this gets adapted to text books and then we'd loose the originality forever,

Where's the agbada, the buba , the war jacket, the cowries , the amulets ? This is a FOURKING misrepresentation and every reasonable Yoruba should frown at it


If someone sells you cheap , you can't be bought expensively

[/b][/size]

Volksfuhrer:


Why is a wooden depiction of the gods better, please! Perhaps you are saying this because that's what you are familiar with.

DaBullIT:



[size=14pt]Ogbeni , Its like wearing suit for Ere Meta , Three wise men's statue in Lagos , doing that definitely defaces and obscures the meaning it stands for , and this type of stewpyd designs and upgrades is why kids no longer prostrate for their fathers , Leave tradition alone, you can't remix it without destroying it [/size]

PAGAN9JA:


shut the fvck up. its GODS.

they are all hugher spiritual forces. take ur useless xtian mentality to some other thread.


wy do u capitalize ur own pwrsonal name then? r u saying ur higher than a God? nonsense mentality!

PAGAN9JA:


u mean the dead man whom uworship as a GOD.

iduzebaba:
1. That is a wrong depiction of Sango..God of thunder fun ra e. oko Oya ati osun..... normally.. he is depicted in a red and black attire with a thor like thunder weapon and prob with a shuku braid with cowries on in head and breathin fire effect in d pics

2. I neva knew d devil has 6 packs... and that babaluaye is d founder of shoki. lols

3. if I may ask.. why was olorun tattooed.

4. u all can see dat the African goddess for beauty and love is black and beautiful.. tonto dike and family ' take note.

PAGAN9JA:

1Corinthians 1 vs 18, John 3 vs 16, Revelation 1vs8, Romans 10 vs 8-11. You can google those passages, they are good enough to answer your questions. thanks

u mean the dead man whom uworship as a GOD.

LEXYCOM:

Over too-know dey worry u.......I command u to have sense in Jesus name

ChokolateBoss:
Photo credit go to James C. Lewis, a US-based photographic artist.
Personally, I've always been fascinated by the rich cultural history of the Yorubas and Binis.

1. AGANJU





2. BABALUAYE




3. ERINLE




4. ESU




5. IBEJI




6. IBEJI




7. OBA




8. OBATALA




9. OKO




10. OLOKUN




11. OLORUN




12. ORI




13. ORUNMILA




14. OSANYIN




15. OSOOSI




16. OSUMARE




17. OSUN




18. OYA




19. SANGO




20. YEMOJA



A few excerpts from James C. Lewis:

"This entire belief system in the Orishas was directly linked to the Yorubas of the Ifa tradition. Immediately I became inspired to do a photo series of each of the Orishas I had recently discovered.....it came completely as a surprise when the project went viral overnight.

As soon as I uploaded them on Facebook they took off like wildfire through dry fields of grass and the responses were overwhelmingly abundant. Most of the feedback was phenomenal, but as always you have those who feel the need to be super critical and just plain knit picky....

I wanted to portray the regal beauty of each Orisha while also representing their majestic sensuality. Each iconic depiction was rendered to lend strength to our resilience as a great race of people and to show our youth that they are beautiful, bold and brilliant just they way God created them to be.

To all critics of my artwork who feel that I have misrepresented, over-sexualized, over-modernized, mis-colorized or overall disrespected the Orishas I would like to draw your attention to my favorite phrase….”INTERPRETATION…MUCH LIKE THE BIBLE IS BASED UPON THE TRANSLATOR”. There is no wrong when it comes to an artist’s creative interpretation, one must learn to become fluid with your perception and open up your mind to what the creator of the work is trying to convey.

In no way, shape or form am I advocating the Ifa tradition, as I myself am not a practitioner of the faith, however I wish to shed light on our rich history in hopes that it will enlighten those who wish to dismiss our culture and heritage as merely rubbish. I am not the source of wisdom surrounding the Ifa Tradition as previously stated…I am merely the artist, however the door has been opened for you to research and learn more for yourself…Take that opportunity!"

per1:
They worship what they do not know,gods,they say is of the blacks while Jesus is of the europeans, when u join ur father the devil, he knows about the lion of Judea, king of kings, he is the God of all.thanks to the europeans who brought to us the good news. Alleluia

DaBullIT:



[size=18pt][b]Exactly my point , That's how they sell it and you buy it , clearly most of the depicted gods are nude and which is why it's generated so much traffic , You didn't download the pictures because it means a lot to you , you downloaded the pictures because of the nudity

Every god in Yoruba land is decent , and Yoruba culture frowns at nudity , You'd hardly see a well trained Yoruba chick open her legs and sit down carried away while perverts peek to see the colour of her panties , Mothers take passion in teaching their girls to patonmo ,close your legs , even back then , kids as young as 5 years old would cross their legs or sag thier skirts at the middle to prevent you from seeing anything .

This is a wrong representation of Yoruba gods , One oyinbo should not come and show us how our ancestors look like or how they should look now ,


Sooner or later , images like this gets adapted to text books and then we'd loose the originality forever,

Where's the agbada, the buba , the war jacket, the cowries , the amulets ? This is a FOURKING misrepresentation and every reasonable Yoruba should frown at it


If someone sells you cheap , you can't be bought expensively

[/b][/size]

per1:
gods the works of mere men, God is seeking for Men who will worship Him in truth and righteousness vai Jesus christ. Seek Him, instead of apprecaiting gods in the name of our own ' culture'

per1:
They worship what they do not know,gods,they say is of the blacks while Jesus is of the europeans, when u join ur father the devil, he knows about the lion of Judea, king of kings, he is the God of all.thanks to the europeans who brought to us the good news. Alleluia

ChokolateBoss:


I quite agree with u. I think depicting satan as esu is due to culture equivalence; separate cultures having the same concepts.
So when xtianity came to yoruba land, d equivalent of Satan would of cos be Esu since they're both associated with trickery.
Likewise, in Igbo culture, d equivalent of Satan is Ekwensu since they're both d king of ajo mmo (malevolent spirits)

chiedu7:
ALL ARE IDOLS , NOTHING COMPARED TO JESUS THE ONLY LIVING GOD

PAGAN9JA:


its more serious as an objective representation for real worship.

chiedu7:


JESUS IS ALIVE

Revelation 1:17
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead.

THESE YOUR gODS ARE NOTHING BUT PEOPLE LIKE YOU AND I.

YOU SURELY ARE NOT TOO BRIGHT, NO WONDER YOU ARE A PAGAN

pasol4real:
gud works n depiction.



OBSERVATION: oba was depicted here as the daughter of yemoga n banished wife of sango.sango is the son of ajagun.ajagun is the husband of yemoga.meaning oba n sango are brother n sister .someone pls explain or do their gods marry eachother?

Nways ,what i know is all of dem put together no reach my AMADIOHA.

chiedu7:


JESUS IS ALIVE

Revelation 1:17
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead.

THESE YOUR gODS ARE NOTHING BUT PEOPLE LIKE YOU AND I.

YOU SURELY ARE NOT TOO BRIGHT, NO WONDER YOU ARE A PAGAN

pasol4real:
gud works n depiction.



OBSERVATION: oba was depicted here as the daughter of yemoga n banished wife of sango.sango is the son of ajagun.ajagun is the husband of yemoga.meaning oba n sango are brother n sister .someone pls explain or do their gods marry eachother?

Nways ,what i know is all of dem put together no reach my AMADIOHA.

macof:


Although I liked your comment but most of it was unnecessary

Art is an expression of the artist...let it live cus even typical depiction of the Orisa are art
Btw most Yemoja sculptures, you would find her naked with her breast visible

Volksfuhrer:


Even before you replied, I clearly understood your objection. Perhaps, the artist erred in his depiction of the gods as presented, but I still don't think the idea of using models was altogether wrong!

We have depicted many of these gods in plays and movies using actors, why then is the idea of using models strange?