The Nigerian pyro-artist Alex Idoko

DW (English)

Ever heard of pyro-fusion art? Well, you’re about to. Because Alex Idoko from Nigeria is on fire!

Transcript

00:00Courageous and powerful images that take on women's rights and post-colonial African struggles.

00:10And they're set on fire just like that? No, actually, quite the opposite. They are born out

00:17of or with fire. I always say the flame, every stroke of the flame has a feeling because there's

00:22a fear inside of me that what if, what if this fire just, you know, explodes?

00:30So there's that, like, fear, but like I'm okay and confident that it's not going to happen.

00:37Fire is often seen as destructive, but for Alex Idoko, it is a tool of creation. With the

00:44help of pyrography, he puts our perception of creation and destruction to the test.

00:50When you see my work, you should be able to see a message because a lot of times I don't

00:55want to tell people the meaning of my work. I want them to see the beauty and the resilience

00:59that is found. I miss all the challenges that is happening around. So I wanted to be able

01:05to make them to value the true essence of life.

01:09Using pyrography, a technique of burning images onto wood and canvas, Alex transforms

01:15charged surfaces into powerful narratives. The process is not without its dangers.

01:20When I first started, it started with wood, you know, like using fire on wood. And with

01:25the wood, I experienced a lot of challenges like scarcity of material, getting the wood

01:30and all that. So I had to go like, you know, deep down into different areas, you know, looking

01:35for wood. And not just seeing the wood, you have to, you know, check the surfaces. I use

01:40sandpaper to, you know, check the surfaces to see if the fire is going to work perfectly,

01:45you know, on the surface. And sometimes when I'm there, you know, all the go-go-go-go,

01:49all the fire, all the sawmill and all those kind of noises. So it kind of, you know, caused

01:55some challenges like my eyes, you know, trying to source for wood and all that.

01:59Like most artists, Alex started out drawing. So what made him decide to swap brushes and

02:05canvas for the blowtorch and wood?

02:08All artists, you know, they start, you know, drawing cartoons and all those kind of things,

02:12you know, from late. So same with me, using pencil, charcoal and all that. Well, I think

02:17in 2008 or 26, I started drawing portraits and with the pencil work and color, pastel

02:26and all that. But I've always been drawn to something natural, like this, something that

02:31has this organic feel.

02:33This is it. This is soldering blowtorch. Like I use it for those smaller areas, like the

02:38delicate areas. And also, this is the one I use most of the time, the blowtorch. And

02:43this is another one. Lighting it up now.

02:46Now you can see how I'm reducing it. It's like you can reduce it. I usually use the soft

02:50pressure, you know, to be able to work so it doesn't put much pressure on the canvas.

02:56So before I forget, this is the razor blade I use. I usually, you know, shape it this way

02:59to be able to create some highlights and details on the canvas after burning.

03:03Like, how can I add something organic, something raw? I went to Bainway. So I saw one old, like,

03:10man in the market. So I saw him using fire, like this panabitin fire to, it was just burning

03:17something. So when I saw it, when I went home that day, I was like, but how can I use the

03:23pencil and the charcoal as a fire? Wood can resist, you know, the fire and all that. So I chose

03:29wood to be able to start doing portraits.

03:31With every stroke, every burn, Alex tells a deeper story. He is concerned with the big

03:38issues of the day, with social justice, inequality, and human rights. Why does he literally burn

03:46for them?

03:46I am troubled when I see oppression. I am troubled when I see people don't have a voice. I am

03:52troubled when the government or, you know, the people that are supposed to cause a certain

03:57positive change. They are not doing what they are supposed to do. It troubles me as a person

04:01and as a citizen. So, and sometimes one of the ways to be able to lend my voice is to,

04:06you know, create, like, an artwork, you know, something to be able to, because I see it like

04:12a way to lend my voice to my society, to my, to people around. And I also feel much more

04:18comfortable knowing that I have onboarding, like I have moved something because sometimes

04:23it comes like a weight. No matter how I have a certain theme, I try to express in my artwork.

04:27Alex's work is a movement urging us all to look closer, think deeper, and spark change. What legacy

04:35does he hope to achieve with this work?

04:37There's this feeling of accomplishment knowing that even though I live, I'm able to, I left

04:45a footprint behind knowing that I was able to lend voice. I was able to, you know, create something,

04:52you know, that is going to make people see and remember that they have a root, you know, they have

04:57a place they came from. So every artwork I create, I feel like I am communicating to somebody. I am

05:04communicating to myself and showing how important it is for us to be able to, you know, value where

05:10we come from. So every artwork I create, it's like, well, whether I'm alive or I'm not alive,

05:17I know I've left something very important. Alex Idoko is passionate about creating with fire

05:24and not just transforming burnt wood and canvas. With his art, he hopes to create social impetus and

05:31possibly change.

05:37you

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