Ademola Olugebefola (born Bedwick Lyola Thomas; October 2, 1941) is an American multidisciplinary visual artist,

 Ademola Olugebefola (born Bedwick Lyola Thomas; October 2, 1941) is an American multidisciplinary visual artist,

designer, educator, musician, and entrepreneur from Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. A significant figure in the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s and 1970s, Olugebefola's artistic portfolio spans painting, murals, printmaking, illustration, drawing, theatre scenic design, and sculpture. He has been based in Harlem, New York City, since 1966.

Early Life and Education

Born in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Olugebefola moved to New York City with his family at a young age. He later earned an Associate of Arts (A.A.) degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology.

Career

Fine Arts

In 1964, Olugebefola joined the Twentieth-Century Creators group. He co-founded the Weusi Artist Collective in 1965 and the Weusi Gallery in New York City, organizations that supported African American artists and celebrated pan-African aesthetics and themes. He was also instrumental in establishing the Dwyer Cultural Center in Harlem.

Olugebefola's work has been featured in several prominent exhibitions, including:

Seeing Jazz: Artists and Writers on Jazz (1997), Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C.

Black Art-Ancestral Legacy: The African Impulse in African-American Art (1989–1990), Dallas Museum of Art, Texas.

When The Spirit Moves: African American Art Inspired by Dance (2000–2001), Spelman College Museum of Fine Art, Atlanta, and Anacostia Community Museum, Washington D.C.

His art is part of collections at institutions like the Studio Museum in Harlem, and his papers are archived at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

Design and Business

Olugebefola has illustrated numerous publications, including Shirley E. Riley's poetry book The Cool is Gone (1979). In the 1970s, he and his brothers opened "Ori-Gem," a Caribbean apparel store and gallery in St. Thomas. Later ventures included "Tetrahedron," an arts brokerage, and "Solar Associates," a marketing, advertising, and graphic production firm he founded with his wife, Pat Davis.

Exhibitions

Black Art-Ancestral Legacy: The African Impulse in African-American Art (1989–1990), Dallas Museum of Art, Texas.

Seeing Jazz: Artists and Writers on Jazz (1997), Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C.

When The Spirit Moves: African American Art Inspired by Dance (2000–2001), Spelman College Museum of Fine Art, Atlanta, and Anacostia Community Museum, Washington D.C.

Ademola Olugebefola's work continues to reflect his dedication to African American culture, pan-African aesthetics, and artistic innovation.