U of A School of Art Presents Fashion Show With Visiting Artist Peju Layiwola 

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Peju Layiwola

The U of A Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences' School of Art will bring internationally acclaimed artist and scholar Peju Layiwola to campus this week for a series of workshops culminating in a student fashion show. The free, public show will run from 2-4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 25, in the School of Art's Studio and Design Center lobby and will feature Nigerian food. 

The fashion show marks the end of a weeklong resist-dyeing workshop series, where students from across disciplines will study àdìrẹ, a centuries-old Yoruba textile tradition from southwest Nigeria. Their finished creations will debut on the runway alongside designs by Layiwola and by Edward Osei, a U of A art education master's student from Ghana. 

Layiwola, professor of art and art history at the University of Lagos and Mellon Curatorial Fellow at the Stanley Museum of Art at the University of Iowa, is recognized as a leading voice in African art and material culture. Her career includes numerous awards, grants and fellowships, as well as ties to Arkansas through the 2020 Ambassador of Goodwill Award from the state of Arkansas and the 2019 Tyson Scholar Fellowship at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Layiwola's work is also represented in major collections, including Microsoft Lagos, the Yemisi Shyllon Museum at Pan Atlantic University and with private collectors such as JP and Ebun Clark and HRH, the Obi of Onitsha. 

Janine Sytsma, assistant professor of art history, notes that these events demonstrate how the school is providing students with unique opportunities to engage with a respected artist and to learn firsthand a resist-dyeing tradition from southwest Nigeria. "Through this workshop," she explained, "students gain knowledge of Yoruba textile design that will enrich their development as artists, scholars, educators and designers."

Layiwola's visit is a collaborative effort between the school's art history and art education programs, demonstrating their shared commitment to interdisciplinary, experiential learning in arts scholarship and practices. Kathy Brown, director of graduate studies in art education and endowed assistant professor of art education, noted, "Art education is excited to collaborate with art history to bring Dr. Layiwola's workshops to our students. We are looking forward to participating in cultural traditions and situate the workshops' themes and experientiality within the wider arts-based research discourse." 

John Blakinger, art history program director, explained that the School of Art is a hub where local and worldwide art practices converge, calling the events prime examples of how the school engages in meaningful outreach, "Her visit reflects the global reach of our program and demonstrates how we connect local partnerships — such as with Crystal Bridges — with international, cross-disciplinary projects that strengthen the arts in Arkansas." 

The fashion show is free and open to all, with no reservation necessary. Learn more at calendars.uark.edu/event/resist-dye-fashion-show.