To be buried Monday evening
The death has been announced of Nigerian contemporary artist, Prof. Yusuf Grillo.
He was said to have died following complications from contracting the dreaded COVID-19 virus.
According to his son, Gboyega Grillo, son of the deceased, the late artist died in the early hours of Monday, Aug. 23.
Speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Grillo, who could not hide his emotions, said he was so pained that he wasn’t able to speak to the media, due to the shock and preparations toward the burial.
He revealed that his father would be given a Muslim funeral on Monday at 4 p.m at Atan cemetery in Lagos.
Grillo is considered one of Nigeria’s outstanding and academically trained painters.
Born in Lagos in 1934, Yusuf Grillo, was known for his inventive works and the prominence of the colour blue in many of his paintings.
He attended the Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology, Zaria, where he received a diploma in Fine Arts and a post-graduate diploma in education.
In 1966, Grillo left Zaria for study at the academic halls of Cambridge University and later travelled to Germany and the United States of America.
Considered one of Nigeria’s outstanding and academically trained painters, Grillo emerged to prominence and international recognition in the 1960s and 1970s while exhibiting a large collection of his early works.
He makes use of his western art training in many of his paintings, combining western art techniques with traditional Yoruba sculpture characteristics.
His preference for the colour blue in natural settings paintings is sometimes similar to the adire or resist-dyed textiles used in Nigeria.
He was a former Head of the Department of Art and Printing at Yaba College of Technology
