
Sofia Vellano Rubin
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J. D. Akeredolu was the founder of the school of thorn carving and initially carved name stamps from the large thorns of the silk-cotton tree before moving to figurative work that customarily depicts everyday Yoruba life. He trained at the Hammersmith School of Arts, London and then later taught at the Owo Government School.
He exhibited his carvings first at the Berkeley Galleries, London in 1945 and at the Harmon Foundation, NYC in 1948. He then went on to exhibit extensively across Africa, USA and UK.
Akeredolu's carvings were first acquired in the 1930s by Frank Willett, director of the Hunterian Museum & Art Gallery, Glasgow. Willett published many monographs on Akeredolu and his carvings, his acquisitions were featured in the 2024 Hunterian exhibition "The Trembling World".