Beginning in the early 1980s, Rotimi Fani-Kayode (1955-1989) developed a photographic practice that refused categorisation, cutting across cultural codes, gender norms, and artistic traditions. Born into a prominent Nigerian family, Fani-Kayode emigrated to London in the 1960s, seeking political refuge during civil war. As an art student in the United States, he came to negotiate his outsider status along multiple axes, balancing his family heritage and immigration status alongside his own queer sexuality and exposure to underground subcultures. Channelling these multiple facets of his identity into photography, Fani-Kayode generated a remarkable body of images over the course of a career cut tragically short by his death in 1989.

Golya Mirderikvand’s paintings emerge from a place of deep focus, where both her external and internal worlds converge. She explores subjects that draw and hold her attention with the right intensity. The works in this exhibition are part of a recent series inspired by nature, capturing intricate networks of branches—whether through the canopies they form or the shadows they cast.

Her artistic process begins with photographing landscapes that feature compelling patterns of tree branches. She captures scenes from multiple angles, experimenting with light and shadow and zooming in on compositions that balance abstraction and realism. The selected photographs are then edited and carefully chosen as references for her paintings.

Displayed together, this series of paintings creates a lyrical harmony, inviting viewers into a visually rich world of structured yet organic complexity.