By Tajudeen Sowole
Within the artistic space,
Dipo Doherty extracts the essence of man's sojourn on earth and beyond from the
complex world of science. This much he expresses in the solo exhibition titled Coherence in Duality which recently held
at Nike Art Gallery, Lekki, Lagos.
One of the works from Dipo Doherty's Coherence In Duality |
Coming
from a science background, specifically engineering, Doherty appears to have employed
art as a window in expressing his views on subjects that are traditionally
scientific. While the strength of art affords him the space to extend his
engineering views within the context of dealing with human emotions, bringing
raw science into art appears like a complex hybrid of expressions.
Viewed
in soft copies after the close of the exhibition, some of the works, however,
appears more traditional in rendition. This helps in diffusing possible technical
tension between the flexibility of art and the rigidity of science.
As he clarifies, "My works, most often,
start with the human form. It is so integral to my art because it’s the medium
via which we experience these energies. I begin to intertwine physical and
sensory interactions with matter to emotions, search for the mathematical undertones,
and geometrically express them as my creativity dictates".
From a piece
of cubism texture in semi design to a mix of traditional drawings, in some
cases, Doherty emphases the role of geometry in linking his thoughts in art
with science through figurative expressions. He agrees that his science
background is unavoidably loud in his art, noting, "My technical drawing
and scientific background have thoroughly informed my art".
Having set out on both worlds of art and
science as early as 14, when "I began assembling and drawing cross
sections of machine elements and architecture," expressing himself in diverse
dimensional spaces, he notes, "put me in awe".
However,
he thinks the merging of art and science should take another level beyond the
ordinary, adding, "Tied with my concurrent scientific studies, I began to
draw bonds between the chemical and physical nature of matter and their forms.
This led me on a path of inquiry".
In the
age of contemporaneity where art is being opened up to accommodate the
reluctance of craft and blurring the line of design as well as taking the
resilience of modernity into consideration, scientific contents of Doherty’s
art appear to have arrived at the right period.
"Forms are spiritual," he confirms
a common belief in art parlance. "These regular arrangements hold secrets
that thoroughly expatiate the experiences we perceive on a human level:
Emotions, Karma, Personalities and Psyches."
Doherty
began his studies in Mechanical engineering in 2009 at the University of
Virginia, U.S., where “I came across the deeper order to my geometric
reasoning: Cohesive forces in water, thermodynamic efficiencies of fins on
heated elements, and sound barriers created by compressed air. Various physical
phenomena adequately reasoned out by elegant equations and being influenced by
mere virtue of its shape. I strongly felt, like Einstein did, that hidden
amongst all these experiences, the laws governing the universe from subatomic
quarks to planetary systems were coherent and uniform. If I wasn’t discovering
it mathematically, then a consistent inquiry through art would reveal this
secret to me.
“Slowly,
I began to approach my engineering knowledge base from an artistic perspective.
I was more inclined to feeling the emotion of my studies rather than the
discrete data. I dedicated sketchbooks in the wee hours of the day to free my
mind on scientific topics that fascinate me and geometrically express equations
and ideas. Later on I discovered about cubism and its pioneers. Picasso
resonated with my ideas on geometry by elaborating the difference in realities
perceived by virtue of perspective and relative position in space. I felt a
kinship with these masters and took the onus on myself to continue this
inquiry, equipped with modern day knowledge.”
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