Carla Hedstrand

My work can best be described as narrative painting and my sculptures are mostly stylised figures. I studied Fine Arts at Yaba College of Technology Lagos Nigeria and later got a diploma in Fine Arts at the University of Portsmouth UK. In Portsmouth I did a bit of performance arts and explored with mixed media. In some of my paintings, I try to narrate the day-to-day living of my native people in Africa. I pick up an object and paint through a chronology of my selected item. The spirit realm plays a major part with life in Africa and the ancestral spirits are often invited to dwell in the dance and drums of my people, my work tries to capture the spirit behind the dance and the drums. Bright colours are inevitable in capturing the warmth and the vibrancy of a culture as colourful as ours.

Depicts the nucleus family as expected in our society. The figures suggest the unity that such a union should be like, with the father often the head and stands as a covering for his family at all times. He may look up to his source of strength for direction what ever his belief.

My Three Wife.

Part of the chronology of the Palm Wine.

This Painting depicts the polygamous nature of some African family. And the part the Palm wine plays in marriage ceremony.

My Wine Tapper.

Part of the chronology of the Palm Wine.

This character is the main player in the journey of the palm wine from the tree to the bottle and finally in belly of mankind. He stands as the official brewer and distributor of his product. His link to the ancestors makes is vital because their anger will see him falling off the tree. His reputation of great importance as he should not be seen as mixing his product with water for economic gains hence he looses patronage.

My Wonderful Saviour.

This is the face of Christ as has been depicted by many an Artist. The blood, the blank eyes seems to ask the question; is this really what I look like.