b. 24 October 2000, Lagos, Nigeria Lives and works in London, UK Olaolu Akeredolu-Ale, known professionally as Slawn, is a Nigerian-British street artist and designer who merges graffiti-inspired expressionism with Yoruba cultural motifs. After early experience in Nigeria’s skateboarding culture and co-founding the skatewear brand Motherlan in 2018, he moved to London in 2019 to study graphic design at Middlesex University. The pandemic sparked his signature style—playful, doodle-like canvases featuring exaggerated faces and bold colors, which he began sharing via social media and gifting at gatherings. Since then, Slawn’s career has rapidly taken off—he held his debut solo exhibition in 2021, designed the BRIT Awards statuette in 2023 (a first for a Nigerian-born artist), and notably became the first artist to have his artwork featured on a Formula 1 car in 2025. His live-painted mural at Saatchi Yates, comprised of 1,000 gradient-toned canvases each adorned with a hand-sprayed face, sold out during its run. Slawn’s work, celebrated for its anarchic energy and cultural resonance, has drawn praise and provocation in equal measure.