The Reality of Being a Digital Artist in Africa

Working as a digital artist in Africa comes with its challenges. He says, “Being a digital artist in Africa is unique. Most of my counterparts in other regions have access to more tools and maybe even more knowledge”. It’s also expensive. “You have to first invest in an iPad, then other tools,” he further adds.

But he also sees opportunity in the struggle. “If you overcome the hurdles, there's enough room for everyone. Once you break through, it’s easy to be spotlighted.”

Big Wins and Favorite Works

Looking back on his career so far, Mayowa highlights two major moments. Winning a design competition in 2017 was his first taste of validation. "It was confirmation that I'm on the right path," he says. The second major moment came when he collaborated with Disney and Balmain. "Even if I think I’m just a little person, my work is going far and wide. That was the motivation I needed to keep going."

One of his personal favourites is a 2018 painting that stirred controversy and an unexpected flood of prayers and encouragement from strangers. "I had pastors and random people reaching out to pray for me," he recalls.

As for his collections, the Kamaru vs the World series holds a special place in his heart. “I enjoyed the creative process, just being offline and just drawing consistently,” he says.

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On Plagiarism, Physical Art, and What’s Next

Like many artists, Mayowa’s work hasn’t been immune to theft. He told us, “Yeah, my work has been stolen a couple of times. People use my paintings for their album covers without permission.” But for smaller infractions, he usually takes a low-key approach. “Honestly, it's better to just let it go. I mostly tend to ignore it or just send like a nice DM”, he says.

His advice? “Make sure you put your watermark across. But then again, it just distorts the artwork. Honestly, as hard as it is, I would say the thing to do now is just ignore it until it’s a big company that you can sue and get money from.”

Lately, Mayowa has shifted his attention to the physical realm, printing his artworks on shirts, scarves, bandanas, and even puzzles. "I just want to know what my limit is," he says.

Ending Bits

When asked what advice he’d give to up-and-coming digital artists in Africa, Mayowa keeps it simple yet powerful, "Fail fast and fail hard. You only get better the more you fail". In Shutabug’s world, failure isn’t the end, it's part of the process

Whether he’s painting memories of Lagos, remixing styles, or navigating the art scene with zero blueprint, Shutabug is proof that you don’t need a straight path to tell meaningful stories. Just passion, curiosity, and a willingness to try.