Contemporary Art of Love | Figurative Painting & Healing Through Color

"Love, they say, is unconditional, real, and strong—an intense feeling or deep affection that ought to be good, expressive, long-lasting if truly real. Oh, how beautiful it could have felt! My works are essentially a symphony of the love I desire for myself. Growing up, I had an appalling experience of love from my parents, which later affected my understanding of love as an individual. For my parents, their love life was almost like a nightmare, something that, as my mother would say, "I should have never married him." Maybe they weren’t meant to be, or they just couldn’t get along. The marriage was chaotic throughout, and we, as their offspring, bore the brunt of their shortcomings. My parents' marriage made me understand what it feels like to marry the right person—if one decides to marry at all. My story is just one among thousands of similar stories around the world.

I tend to use colors mundane enough to represent love in my works, such as rose red, yellow, purple, and other love-related colors. My works serve as a solace to my childhood experience of a marriage on the verge of collapse. I express myself through painting the opposite of the kind of love I grew up experiencing—the true meaning of love, as it should be. The expressions of my subjects are quite docile yet compelling, reflecting human reactions to true love and the emotions that follow. Telling my stories through art in this way has helped in the gradual healing process from my childhood traumas—a therapy—and also serves as a guide towards the kind of life I truly want as an individual."

MEET

Victoria Makinde

Victoria Oyindamola Makinde (b. November 9, 1999) is a contemporary Nigerian oil painter whose work reflects a lifelong devotion to fine art. Raised in Nigeria, her creative journey began early and was nurtured through formal training at the Federal College of Education, Osiele, Abeokuta, where she earned her National Certificate of Education (NCE) in Fine Arts.

She further sharpened her technical and conceptual skills during her industrial training (SIWES) in Ibadan, one of Nigeria’s cultural hubs. Now based in Lagos, Victoria continues to evolve her practice, contributing her unique visual voice to the country’s dynamic contemporary art scene.

Working primarily with oil on canvas, her paintings are emotionally resonant explorations of identity, womanhood, and everyday experience. Her brushwork reveals both precision and spontaneity, capturing the beauty and complexity of life in rich, layered compositions.

Victoria Makinde’s art is both personal and universal — a testament to the power of visual storytelling and the enduring spirit of Nigerian creativity.

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