Yinka ilori: Architect of Joy — EYES & EDGE MAGAZINE

So much of what surrounds us everyday is drab, concrete, grey, big old skyscrapers, forgotten spaces everywhere. Keen for the taking; yearning to be reinvigorated with fresh ideas that bring us inspiration when we walk by them.

It’s no secret that we as humans crave environments that makes us want to gather, join and connect around them. Imagine for a second if the world we experienced outside was dripping in color, dotted with brightness, and pulling us back into our childlike wonder that somehow sadly tends to dwindle as we become adults? How much happiness would it bring us into our everyday lives to exist in such a visually awe inspiring world?

This is exactly what the extraordinary British-Nigerian artist, Yinka Ilori’s, work captures. Yinka shared with EYES & EDGE that he had been coined an Architect of Joy at Art Basel Miami about a decade ago. I think we can all agree, that’s the perfect title.

Bloomingdale’s *Cherish Your Magic* Flagship store installation

Yinka: It’s a wonderful title to have, and one I try to live by, especially the work I do in the public spaces and across disciplines. It’s a blessing; such an important title, and I really do try and bring joy to the world we live in.

Art by Yink Illori Photo by Robin Gautier — **Art**: Yinka Ilori *Domus* **Photo**: Robin Gautier

The infrastructure we have created as humanity is a reflection of our prioritization of productivity over play, isolation over community, and function over imagination. In the aftermath of us collectively experiencing a worldwide pandemic, an even larger sense of this disconnect was amplifying. As we finally recalibrate after such an intensely difficult period of separation amidst each other, many of us seem to be seeking the same desire to connect with a robust, thriving community.

An incredible opportunity is in front of us; to reimagine, rebuild our spaces as the old foundation as we knew it crumbles, and a new world full of love, hope, and deep connection emerges. There is no reason why PLAY can’t make up the core building blocks of that foundation. Yinka is a global leader and synthesizer of this mission; often taking forgotten or inaccessible spaces and transforming them to places where people regardless of their differences, can gather.

During a panel discussion at the Portland Art Museum celebrating Yinka Ilori, Rukiyah Adams, inspiring scholar, actively bridging creative vision and systemic change in our city, brought up an idea that really resonated with me.

“We must create joy that is not in reaction to hate.”

To paraphrase, she stated to create joy not in resistance to hate, but instead simply because we need more of it in the world. We don’t need any opposition to joy to have a reason for it. Let’s not give hate that much power. Love, on its own, is worth spreading.

Who made the rules and said we can’t have fun while we are here and that adulthood was to be very serious? Last time I checked, we were all kids once, born curious, loving, and wanting one thing from life - PLAY. The child in us doesn’t disappear, yet always inside at our core, begging to be unleashed in a world that is brighter, more FUN time.

Yinka’s work urges us to imagine what the world would look like if joy was the reason instead of the remedy; Serving as the entire underpinning of our human experience.

**Art:** Yinka Llori *The Colour Palace**‍ ‍* Photo: *Adam Scott*

**Art:** Yinka Ilori *Giant Chairs in the Dockland - London. Features two 10 feet high chairs from Yinka made with Dutch Wax.*

Yinka’s story started with transforming chairs. From chairs came installations, and from those installations came playgrounds. From there on moving forward, Yinka’s mission and focus on public spaces became clear, and his creativity started exploding. The rest set a chain of his-story worth repeating. Ilori, always honoring the importance of play, has the beautiful goal of creating a playground in every country around the world.

**Art:** Yinka Ilori Flamboyance of Flamingos Playground transforms an out of use area in Parsloes Park into a play haven. **Photo:** Thierry Ba

**Art:** Yinka Ilori Flamboyance of Flamingos **Photo:** Thierry Ba

Yinka acknowledges that the most imaginative creative people on the planet are children, and looks to them for guidance.

One of my favorite projects of his is called, “The Launderette of Dreams”. Ilori returned to the primary school he attended as a child in London to make a visit with the kids. He was to take them on a field trip to the launderette he and his family frequented growing up. The children admitted that they found it a bit boring, even though Yinka had just shared his nostalgia with them about how relaxing he how found it to just watch the washing machine turn. He asked them, “well then, how can we make it more fun?” He let the children take the lead, guiding how they could take this ordinary space, and make it extraordinary.

Like magic, a Yinka x Legoland X Children collab was created and instead of walking into the space as a famous artist with all of the answers, Yinka let the kids be the experts on the matter.

**Art:** Yinka Ilori *The Laundrette of Dreams* **Photo**: Mark Cocksedge

**Art:** Yinka Ilori *The Launderette of Dreams* **Photo**: Mark Cocksedge

We asked Yinka how he was as a child himself.

Yinka: When my parents would buy things for me, I was always deconstructing or breaking the object. I was extremely curious and shy. I was always interested in seeing how things worked; how a car would move or how a bird would fly. That curiosity led me to explore how objects could facilitate or play a part in that childlike joy.

When I was a kid growing up in my parent’s house, I saw how they were able to tell stories within their community through music, through textiles, through food… and how storytelling is really important for someone's identity and experience in the world. Everyone has a story, whether it's an individual, a larger community, even an animal or in nature; you just have to be willing to listen.

**Art: Yinka Ilori** *Be the best you can be Basketball Court* - Canary Wharf Bank Street Park

I had been following Ilori’s work for the better part of a decade, as an artist myself, I always felt a funny creative kinship with him. We seemed to be drawn to a similar aesthetic, color palette, and mission to bring more childlike wonder and joy into the world.

So, after all of these years I finally reached out to his team to do a piece on him, and they responded with a wild coincidence. Yinka was to travel from London to Portland, Oregon, partnering with the Portland Art Museum, to create something he had never done before in the next couple of months, and it still wasn’t even announced to the public. Residing in Portland myself, his travels here felt kismet.

Yinka was coming stateside to create **“Mountains Full of Blessings,” a massive mural stretching across the concrete walkway adjacent to the PAM entrance. Instead of just Yinka painting it, he was venturing into the unknown. He was going to sketch out the stencil of his work, and invite us — the public — to paint it, as a community**. This was the first time Yinka ever let anyone else paint his work, making the mural exponentially special.

Yinka: It becomes a piece for everyone, doesn’t it? The work I create is never about ownership, never about one person… it's about the collective community owning the work. When you give people and communities the power to own something, it creates more respect and an appreciation for the work. So, *the work for me is definitely owned by the community**, and that was the intention when we hosted the workshop at the museum.*

On a perfect summer PNW day, painting day arrived. Hundreds of people showed up, from kids, to elders, to families and to artists. My best friend and I waited in line for our cans of paint - and were designated a section and an hour of time. 400 people came through that day to complete this beautiful piece and many friends were made while painting.

Community mural painted by 400+ member of the public

The inspiration for the mural was decided collectively on a panel at the PAM months prior, as it was dreamt up what to depict. From the genesis, it was a community collective effort. Adams also mentioned, in reference to the mural in PDX, maybe this is a new kind of monument. Not something towering above us, but something beneath our feet that we can walk on, dance on, and can’t be torn down.

This monument reminds us that joy isn’t frivolous, play isn’t pointless and community doesn’t have to be complicated. All it takes is inviting everyone to connect around something that makes us feel seen, held and inspired. When we have each other, we have more than enough.

Yinka: We lose the importance of human connection, human interaction. There's nothing better than engaging outdoors, meeting new people, having a conversation about what you're experiencing, and sharing stories with strangers.

There is something quite powerful about that. With this commission, hopefully, what you're going to see is people-adults, kids, communities-actively engaging in conversation and movement in the space. I hope it becomes a shrine that offers a sense of peace, belonging, blessings, like in the title.

When we asked Yinka what his hopes were to see evolve in the space that is now the mural, he responded beautifully.

Yinka: I hope to see performances being held here, people dancing, people sharing in joy, reflecting, meditating, because the work is situated and surrounded by such an incredible natural habitat with rich and beautiful colours. I hope it becomes a sacred place of joy, solace, affirmation, and memory making.

Accessible spaces for us ALL to gather are of utmost importance in the new world of hope and love we are building. Community is our most valuable resource and Love and Hope are the reason we are here. Speak of them more often than anything else and let’s change this narrative together. We thank you sincerely Yinka, for being an integral part in initiating this gathering space as a centerpiece in the resurgence of our beautiful, beloved city after a long difficult time.

Let’s cheers to the new world of love being actively designed and built by joy architects like Yinka before us, and as they say in the furniture biz - CHAIRS!

or @yinka_ilori on instagram.

Check out his debut Monograph, “Chairman” which will be published globally via ORO Editions as of Sep 1st

Article Written By @megangazzo or @gazzybygazzo. Megan is a writer, comedian, designer, health advocate, connector, protector of all things sacred on earth and beyond. May unconditional love rule everything around us.