Ade A. Olufeko

In this Ijebu name, the Yoruba surname is Olufeko.

Ade Olufeko
Olufeko in Cairo Egypt, 2017
Born	1980 (age 44–45) Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
Nationality	Nigerian American
Other names	Adéolu
Occupation	Technologist
Known for	Humanities and innovation, Founding of Visual Collaborative Founder or Wing Chun Foundation Lagos
Notable work	North Star (2019) Remember To Rise (2018)

Ade Abayomi Olufeko ^[a] (born 1980), is an American-born designer and technologist active primarily in Lagos, Nigeria. He is the founder of Visual Collaborative, an American platform collaborating with diverse experts on socio-economics. ^{[1] [2]}

Early life and education

Ade Olufeko was born in Minneapolis. He hails from Ijebu lineage; both his parents were entrepreneurs. He spent his childhood in Lagos, Nigeria, specifically in Surulere, a mainland city, during the country's Second Republic. He received his primary education at Unilag Staff School and later attended St. Gregory's College in Obalende for his secondary education. ^[3]

In the mid-1990s, he returned to Minneapolis for further studies at Camden. He attended Metropolitan State University in Saint Paul, where he pursued studies in Computer Science with a focus on multimedia technologies.^{[ citation needed ]}

Career

Work as technologist, IBM and Visual Collaborative

Olufeko's technology career began during the dot-com period, and he worked for Ameritech, a 3M spinoff Imation , and IBM.^{[ citation needed ]} His focus developed into digital strategy and information architecture.^{[ citation needed ]}

In 2007, Olufeko established Visual Collaborative. Since its inception, he has teamed up with more than 150 artists from different cities showcasing their talents. ^[4] In 2015, he returned to oversee and curate the platform. ^[5]

Art

Style and selected works

Wax print styled AYO Mancala, designed by Ade Olufeko

Self-taught as a digital painter and in mixed-media artistry, Olufeko's creative process as an avocation evolved over a decade. His exhibited work explores Africanfuturism, experimental Chaos theory and Counterculture. ^[6]

Ayo Mancala

In 2021, Olufeko created and introduced the wax print version of the indigenous AYO mancala in Ankara to enter the consumer market with 200 units. The response and reviews were well-covered in local media. In the third quarter of the year, he released the Kente and Adire product lines which drew considerable interest outside Nigeria across west Africa and its diaspora. ^[7] According to audited data, sales of locally made units exceeded 5,000. ^[8] During the capital flight in the nation and following a fire outbreak in one of the largest wood communities, part of the sales helped feed numerous artisans and their families. ^{[9] [10]}

Literary works

Visual Collaborative publishing platform:

• 2019: Voyager, Vol. 2 ^[11]
• 2019: Vivencias, Vol. 3 ^[12]
• 2019: Supernova, Vol. 4 ^[13]
• 2020: TwentyEightyFour, Vol. 5 ^[14]
• 2020: Grand Masters, Vol. 7 ^[15]

Notes

1. Simply known as Adé, Pronounced /ɑːˈdeɪ/ ; ah-DAY Yoruba: Adé Olúfẹ́kọ́pronounced [a.déo.lú.fɛ́.kɔ́] .

References

1. Lawore, Mutiat. "Olufeko Champions Intellectual Property, Cultural Identity For Nigeria's Creative Sector". New Telegraph . Retrieved 5 February 2025.
2. Abisola, Shojobi (22 January 2025). "Humanities Navigated By An Innovative Outlier". Independent Nigeria . Retrieved 5 February 2025.
3. "Ade Olufeko/Visual Colabo Q&A". November 11, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-06-02. Retrieved October 12, 2019.
4. Kristy Samone (September 28, 2012). "Pop Up Art Exhibition". Archived from the original on 2018-02-15. Retrieved Feb 15, 2018.
5. "LBS Africa Business Conference ABC Rolls Out Africa We See Campaign". YNaija. January 27, 2016. Retrieved Oct 15, 2017.
6. "Abayomi Olufeko" (PDF). NewWebPick. No. 37. Newwebpick ‘Design for Designers’. Retrieved January 3, 2018.
7. Guardian Nigeria (4 January 2022). "Recalcitrant conformist succeeds with AYO Mancala to remove analytical biases in strategy". The Guardian (Nigeria) . Retrieved 9 January 2022.
8. "Impact of Adeolu Khafre, a Nigerian brand inspired by heritage monuments". Guardian Nigeria. 9 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
9. "The Velocity of business innovation through design". Vanguard (Nigeria). 11 August 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
10. "Seasoned Technologist Tweaked Physical Ayo Mancala That Fed Artisan Families". Leadership News Nigeria. 3 January 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
11. Bankole, Idowu (17 June 2019). "Seun Kuti, Chris Uwaje, others to feature on American platform, 'Visual Collaborative" . Retrieved 6 July 2019.
12. Agbana, Rotimi (19 August 2019). "Dakore Egbuson-Akande, Swaady Martin, others catalogued in Olufeko's Vicencias". Vanguard (Nigeria) . Retrieved 21 September 2024.
13. Onyekwelu, Stephen (4 December 2019). "LIFE & ARTS Nse Ikpe-Etim, William Coupon, others drive creative sector SDG". Business Day. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
14. Onyekwelu, Stephen (6 May 2020). "Les Nubians, Rika, Chigul, Dakore feature in TwentyEightyFour". Business Day (Nigeria) . Retrieved 15 May 2020.
15. "Robert Greene author of the 48 laws of power speaks with futurist Ade Olufeko". The Guardian (Nigeria). 28 December 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2021.