Lot 36: Yusuf Adebayo Grillo (Nigerian, born 1934) Sabada 44 1/2 x 21 1/4in (113 x 54cm)

Sabada
signed and dated 'Grillo 64' (lower left), bears inscription on label 'Sabada (Dance) 64' on reverse
oil on board
44 1/2 x 21 1/4in (113 x 54cm)

PROVENANCE:
Acquired by the current owner's father in Lagos in the 1960s

The sabada is a social dance of praise in reverence of the God-given love and self-esteem within each of us.

In the 1960s the theme of drummers and dancing were popular motifs with the artist and he drew these from the life and culture of his native city of Lagos. It was because Grillo invariably took his subjects from real life and always set his characters in context that he gives his work interest as a social document.

The above work can be seen as a document of an Owanbe (a grandiose party) where the dancers gyrate in ecstasy to the vibrations of the music.