Promoting Thorn Carving: Ooni’s Queen Debuts N14bn L’Extinction Artwork

Promoting Thorn Carving: Ooni’s Queen Debuts N14bn L’Extinction Artwork

By Anuoluwapo Lebi

In a deliberate effort to revive the fading historical and traditional artistry in Nigeria, wife of revered Osun Monarch, Ooni of Ife, Queen Aderonke Ademiluyi-Ogunwusi debuted a masterpiece artwork, “L’Extinction”, worth about N14Billion.

The unveiling of “L’Extinction”, an aesthetically ravishing artwork, with unique cultural relevance and historical background was unveiled on Monday, March 3, 2025, at the Adire Oodua and Art Gallery, at Ooni’s Palace, in Ile-Ife, Osun State.

Speaking at the event, the Ambassador for Environment, Ms. Olapeju Olayemi explained that the priceless art value stem not just from the extreme reality of thorn trees but also from the status of the princely hand-woven attire in which the thorn is placed and the fascinating backstory of thorn carving and lego toys invention in 1932.

The unveiling event intends to commemorate the Aje Festival and to attract divine blessing from the Aje deity to thorn carving which had gone into extinction.

The “NO TO EXTINCTION” artwork was produced by Olapeju Twins and artist Olulaja Akeredolu, from the endangered thorn trees which are no longer available in forests. Ooni’s queen who decried the disappearance of thorn trees in the forest noted that disappearance is due to logging and deforestation activities of human beings.

According to her, “It is the most important piece of thorn carving in history because it is the first artistic carving that accurately tells us to say “NO TO EXTINCTION”. She opined that, “the art piece was created to re-invent the art of thorn carvings, that famed artist Chief Justus Akeredolu from Owo invented in the 1930s, which is currently going into extinction.

“And to bring back the most prestigious aso-oke hand-woven clothes “gbowoyo” that the ancient people of Owo town invented, which means “expensive cloth that takes all the money.“ Thorn Carving, which is an excellent illustration of Africa culture, was invented in Nigeria in the 1930s, about the same time that Ole Kirk Christiansen, a carpenter in Denmark, created lego wooden toys.

“Lego is now a multi-million-dollar toy industry and has produced over 600 billion Lego toys, whereas our iconic miniature tree thorn carving has almost gone into extinction,” she stated.