23/04/2024
It's our visionary's 40th and we are super excited!!!
ComicsDI Media met with the celebrant "Mr Ayo Makinde" on the occasion of his birthday, and also in celebration of his 30 years creating comics. Enjoy the brief but insightful interview we had with him below.
COMICSDI MEDIA: Happy birthday, sir, and congratulations on this milestone, thank you for always being a fountain of inspiration, we would like to ask you few questions on this special occasion.
QUES 1: We know you explained extensively about your creative journey in your media interview with Thisday News Paper in 2015, however we would love to know if you started out as a creator, a writer, or an artist?
ANS: This takes me down memory lane to my primary five in the 90s when I started out as an artist who made his own local comics in the city of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. A lot of people are surprised today when they hear I was once an artist; this was my first love. I did a bit of creative designing too along the line even though deep down in me I had a deep love for writing. It was like the golden age of African literature back then, and this helped a great deal as I read books written by the fathers of African literature like Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Ola Rotimi, Cyprian Ekwensi, Ngugi Wa Thiong’o. We also had the beautiful pacesetters series which came through as contemporary African literature, it was along this line that I discovered the treasure in the foreign literatures with an array of frontline writers like Sidney Seldon, John Grisham, Robert Ludlum, Mario Puzo, Jefferey Archer etc. All these made my metamorphosis from an artist to a comic book writer and creator very seamless, though the African influences I would say played a major role in helping me to master the art of African storytelling.
QUES 2: Growing up, what were the home-grown comics that got your attention?
ANSWER: We didn’t have much of indigenous comics growing up. I think my journey into home grown comics started from the comic snippets at the back of newspapers back then; titles like Captain Africa by Andy Akman published in Vanguard newspaper, a Nigerian superhero title “Mojo” by Morak Oguntade which emerged in the 80s but which I later got to discover in the 90s were my first introduction to indigenous comics. However, one major comic that stood out for me then was the Ajasco family caricature title, it came as a feature often within the Ikebe Super Magazine, also illustrated by the veteran artist “Morak” and published by Wale Adenuga of the famous Superstory TV Series. Another one that really caught my fancy was Skybond Comics with unforgettable heroic characters like “Green Eagle” and “Justice” though the art was in black and white and brown paper print, the line art was really good and the story, quite compelling. Then in mid-2000 I came across ICS Studio’s “Dark Edge” Comic which ushered in a new era of indigenous comics.
QUES 3: What inspires and keeps you going?
ANS: I am inspired by vision, creativity, authenticity, and the need to tell original African stories to mould the mind of the society positively. Beyond this, I see being a creator in the realm of comics/creativity as a calling, this is my number one motivation that keeps me going. This of course does not necessarily downplay the business angle to things but only helps you keep a central focus. Mind you, a calling is not a complicated word to understand, it seemly means your positive contribution to your world after your discovery of how you are wired and what God has loaded you with.
QUES 4: What does success mean to you?
ANS: I take this as a personal question because success means different things to different people depending on the yardstick they are using to define it; however, I would like to answer this question from a different angle, not necessarily success as a definition but the paradox (contrast) of success that has stood out for me in my 39 years. The words of the business mogul and banker of blessed memory “Herbert Wigwe” says it best, he said and I quote, “Success is a meaningless word without failure. I have failed many times, but in every wrong turn, every misstep, there are important lessons. Embrace them.”
QUES 5: Finally, what would you love to be remembered for?
ANS: That is a tough one, but not one I haven’t thought about severally. I would say I would love to be remembered as a man who blessed the world with his gifts, talents, and I would love my works to be a compelling voice to upcoming generation even after my assignment is over and I bow out of the stage called life. I would love the impact of my works to outlive me, so I am very deliberate about what I create.
COMICSDI MEDIA: Whaooo! Such an insightful time chatting with you, so many gems in your words. We wish you a happy birthday and many more fruitful years ahead loaded with creative exploits.
Concept behind the portrait art explained-
Art, in its authentic form, always carries deep meanings, the concept behind the portrait is explained below-
1. The green background depicts fruitfulness while the glow on the green background depicts an enhancement in fruitfulness.
2. Attires in the African culture carry weight, the royal attire in the picture depicts elevation.
3.The gold cup with key emphasis on the “gold” depicts wealth; the meaning of wealth here isn’t money but rather ‘abundance’ in all things.
CONCEPT: Ayo Makinde
LINE ART: Tochukwu Osakwe
COLOURS: Orji Ikenna Victor
The royal attire is partly inspired by Prince T’ Challa’s Wakanda Suit designed by Oscar award-winning costume designer E. Carter from the globally acclaimed movie “Black Panther.”
