Creo founder Olaoluwa Olatunbosun hopes his art workshops will help at-risk youth in the Sault
Although expressing creativity can take a lot of courage, everyone has the ability to share their talents and discover new ones.
That’s the message Olaoluwa Olatunbosun, a 20-year-old student at Sault College, hopes to share with his new creatively-driven program for local youth.
Originally from Nigeria, Olatunbosun moved from his homeland when he was 13 years old with his mother and two siblings. He’s lived in big cities like Las Vegas, Montreal and Toronto before making the decision to come to the Sault last September for the college’s graphic design program.
After settling into small town life, he feels that something is missing here.
“In terms of creativity, I’ve noticed that there aren’t many outlets for young people to give them the opportunity to be a creative genius,” he says.
That’s when he came up with the idea to create Creo, a program designed to provide training and spaces for youth who want to express their creative abilities.
Creo comes from Latin and means “creation”.
During his time in southern Ontario, Olatunbosun studied computer science and got a summer job as a web designer for his church in Toronto. Although the program didn’t work out, he discovered his passion for graphic design and ultimately his calling for artistry.
After arriving in the Sault in September, Olatunbosun opened the United Baptist Church and received approval to operate his workshops out of the building. United Baptist even provided Olatunbosun with $1,000 in funding to help him launch his venture.
“Church is always a really good place for me to feel safe,” he says. “It’s a very safe place.”
Olatunbosun intends to conduct classes and workshops for people aged 15 to 30, while providing a place for the youth to come out and express their creativity through activities such as drawing, painting and water colouring.
The graphic design student says that while the freedom of expression aspect was a huge motivator in founding Creo, the program’s original intentions run much deeper.
“This was created with the intention of combating drug use in Sault Ste. Marie, he says. “These drug-affected kids deserve so much and they didn’t get it. And because they have not understood it, they indulge in things that tarnish their future. I want to be able to create a space in Sault where people can find a way to put those things aside and focus on something else.”
Olatunbosun’s transition to Canadian life was a challenge, especially because he had never experienced a cold winter before.
“I love this place, but the only thing I fear is the cold,” he says.
Olatunbosun admits he felt very isolated during the colder months and wished there was a program like Creo to help take his mind off this difficult time of year.
“The weather is devastating for a lot of people,” he says. “There’s not a lot of sunlight and with that comes a lot of sadness – and that hit me. I feel like if I had a community of creators it would make a huge difference.”
Olatunbosum plans to launch her first Creo class at United Baptist in the coming weeks with a water coloring workshop.
While in Toronto, Olatunbosum visited an innovation center at a nearby library, where they have powerful computers that allow children to explore the intricacies of graphic design.
He spent countless hours learning how to use Adobe Illustrator and began publishing his work online.
“I’ve had millions of views,” he says. “I just kept getting better and better and I knew it was something I wanted to get into.”
As well as providing a space for hands-on workshops such as painting and sketching, Olatunbosum has bigger ambitions to put computers in a space so that children can use them to develop their graphic design skills.
“The only reason I’m as good as I am now is because I had this place in Toronto to keep training,” he says.
Olatunbosum acknowledges that there is a lot of potential here for young people to express their artistic abilities and says that a place like Creo can have a positive impact on the community.
“Before you know it, you can have creatives all over town and this place can become a creative hub,” he says. “This is where I want to see the city go. I want this to be a place where people can freely express their creativity. Where people can sit and enjoy a workshop, learn and create.”
Olatunbosum shares his work on his Instagram and TikTok pages under @olastrator.
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