POC in Architecture is rolling out a new ‘Be Inspired’ blog series which will happen every quarter, to keep our community inspired and in the know of exciting things happening in and around architecture. This first feature we shine a light on Moyo Adebayo, an architectural designer, content creator and exhibtion curator. We hope you are inspired by our first interview, enjoy the read.
Photography: Exhibition “What makes a space Nigerian? - home edition”
| Congratulations on recently completing your first exhibition “What makes a space Nigerian? - home edition”. But before we get into that, for our readers lets learn a bit more about you as a creative. You studied BA architecture?
Thank you so much, yes I studied BA Architecture as architecture is my main passion but I have a love for film as well, which is partially why I create content on Instagram. Also through the recent exhibition I had, I am getting into the world of curating and creative direction, which have a lot of skills that transfer over from architecture. I am hoping that a lot of these other mediums I’m exploring will help make me a more unique and capable architect.
| Where did you study architecture and what drew you to study the subject?
I studied it at the University for the Creative Arts (Canterbury school of architecture) which I think helped me be quite broad with the way I think about architecture.
This might sound cliche but I’ve always wanted to be an architect, even before I really knew what the word meant. I was always drawn to any conversation people were having about architecture. Once I set my mind to becoming an architect everything I did in school was related to that, in art I drew buildings, in product design I designed buildings,etc. Although I was usually indecisive as a kid I just knew architecture was for me.
| How important would you say involving your own identity within your architectural narratives is for you?
I think it's important to remember that architecture is made for people, so it only makes sense that identity should play a huge role in informing architectural spaces. Putting my identity within my architectural narratives is important for me because it is easier to tell a more genuine story and it allows me to make work that I can personally connect with. Also, many others who share a lot of similar experiences with me, due to cultural, even socio-economic backgrounds can connect to and this is very important. So ultimately even when exploring a topic that is personal to me (like in the exhibition) I am consciously thinking about other people’s identity as well as my own.
| Where is your heritage or culture from?
I am British-Nigerian. My parents both came from Nigeria to England, where I was born and raised.
Photography: Exhibition “What makes a space Nigerian? - home edition”
| How did the concept for “What makes a space Nigerian? - home edition” come about?
I did a summer course in 2022 called SOS where we had to think about how critical design can respond to social challenges and long story short, it was the first project where I looked at my Nigerian heritage through design. In one of the crits for my project someone asked: what would it mean to make a space Nigerian? And it was a lightbulb moment.
What would it mean to take an empty space (like a white cube gallery space) and turn it into a Nigerian space, like a Nigerian home. What are the components that make it Nigerian? Being able to answer these questions tangibly would help inform how to make spaces feel more like home, so to speak. It felt really important for me to do this and after sitting on the idea in my notes app for two years, I felt that this year was the right time for me to create the first iteration of the exhibition, no matter what.
| I believe you formed a team of curators to bring the exhibition to life. How did you go about putting the right team together? What advice would you give to a young artist?
The team was put together very organically. I went out to different talks and events to network and would meet people that share a lot of the same interests as me and it would go from having a meeting with them, sharing the brief to then asking if they want to be involved in the project.
I’ll give two pieces of advice.
First, don’t rush finding your team.
It is worth doing it right because these are people who are helping to make your dream a reality. So the two things to look for is if they are really committed to the heart behind the project and whether they have the time to help you. Having these things checked off the list is important because other things/skills you think your team members may need can grow during the course of the project.
Secondly, understand that ideas open doors.
Or really briefs do. What I mean is there is so much power in being able to share a brief with people as a way of connecting with them. During the process of the exhibition, I was able to connect with many designers that I look up to simply because I sent a DM or email saying “Hi my name is Moyo, I’m currently planning...I would love to share the brief about the project and have a brief meeting with you”. Also when you speak to them about the project, they will have interesting ideas that will expand the project so all in all, just make sure to write your idea down and you are willing to share it with people.
Photography: Exhibition “What makes a space Nigerian? - home edition”
| What was the most challenging part about putting the exhibition itself together?
There were a lot of challenging parts, like workload, meeting deadlines but the most challenging part was honestly managing relationships with different people/communication. When planning projects a big part of it is communicating with people like artists, contractors, designers, printers, the list goes on. You find yourself sending loads of emails and texts everyday and it can be overwhelming managing so many moving parts of a project. But this is why it's important to share the load accordingly so you don’t burn yourself out, which honestly I kind of did.
| What has been the most rewarding part of successfully launching this exhibition?
It’s two things. Number one, the reactions of people, from Nigerian grandmas to little kids saying “this feels like home” was a big accomplishment for me. Also, many people would come and bring their family the next day which was very humbling. It was incredibly hard to pull this off so hearing people’s reactions allowed me to know that I wasn’t crazy in putting so much into this project. It felt like the interviews, research, late nights all paid off.
The second part is that I proved to myself I could actually execute a project that has been sitting on the notes app on my phone for so long. After graduating there has been a struggle to find a Part 1 job but being able to see that I can create my own opportunity proves to myself and hopefully to others that you are able to do a lot more than you think you can.
| What can we expect next from Moyo?
Well WMASN or “What makes a space Nigerian?” is an exhibition series where we want to recreate different Nigerian typologies, looking at different contexts and different ideas to spark conversations around culturally suitable spaces in Nigerian and in the diaspora. What I’m trying to say is that there are many more exhibitions to come so readers should please keep an ear out for our next one which is likely to be in London.
| Where can our readers find you?
I have a page on Instagram where I document my architectural journey whilst sharing lessons along the way called Archive 7 (archi_v7). Everyone should please feel free to keep in touch with me there. Also WMASN’s website is wmasn.com where you can read more about the project and signup to the mailing list to hear about more events.
Photography of Moyo Adebayo
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