In The Four Element Series, unveiled on the 6th of October 2025, the artist Balikis Badru (Kejii) achieves something rare and intimate—she paints the invisible connection between humanity and nature.
The collection, composed of four large paintings titled Fire, Earth, Air, and Water, is both visual and emotional, alive with movement and meaning. It explores what it means to exist within the forces that shape our lives, portraying them not as external powers, but as extensions of the human form.
The inspiration for this series came from Avatar, a fantasy world where people manipulate the elements. But Kejii’s interpretation is rooted in something far deeper than fiction. Her goal is not to control the elements, but to understand them—to translate their energy into paint, to embody their rhythm through the human figure. The faceless forms she creates become vessels of energy rather than identity. They belong to no one and yet to everyone, a reflection of how we all carry pieces of nature inside us.
The first painting, Fire, commands attention. A figure emerges from a storm of crimson and gold, its body surrounded by swirling heat. The texture is thick and expressive, and the entire surface seems alive with motion. The energy radiates outward, not destructive but awakening. The piece feels like a study of emotion itself—the kind that can both ignite change and consume what stands in its path. The longer one looks, the more one feels the warmth that the painting emits, as if the flames are alive beneath the brushstrokes.
In contrast, Earth is patient and grounded. The palette of deep browns, ochres, and subtle greens gives it an ancient quality, as though the figure has been carved from the land. There is a quiet dignity in its posture, a stability that anchors the entire collection. The brushstrokes are deliberate and heavy, conveying the slow, enduring strength of the natural world. It is as if this being has watched generations rise and fall and still remains unmoved, a keeper of balance and wisdom.
Then comes Air, light and free. Here, the tones of blue and ivory create a sensation of openness. The paint moves in soft, circular patterns that mimic the rhythm of wind. The figure itself seems to be caught mid-motion, dissolving into the atmosphere around it. The sense of release is palpable—there is no tension, only ease. It captures the spiritual aspect of breath and freedom, a visual whisper that encourages the viewer to let go and simply exist.
Water concludes the series with quiet elegance. The blue tones deepen into a hypnotic calm, and the figure feels both immersed and one with the currents. Every brushstroke ripples, creating texture that mirrors the ebb and flow of the ocean. This painting carries emotion beneath its surface—grief, peace, and acceptance woven together. It feels like reflection made visible, the moment when one stops resisting and learns to move with life’s rhythm.
Kejii’s mastery lies not just in her use of colour and form, but in the way she captures emotion through movement. There is a rhythm that connects the four paintings, a sense that they breathe together. The facelessness of the figures makes them powerful—they are empty vessels filled with meaning. The viewer does not observe them as strangers but recognises something of themselves in every curve, every shadow, every burst of colour.
More than a series of paintings, The Four Element Series is a meditation on existence. It challenges the viewer to look inward, to find the fire that fuels their spirit, the earth that grounds their body, the air that frees their mind, and the water that softens their heart. Through this collection, Kejii does not simply represent the natural elements—she translates their energy into human emotion. Each brushstroke feels like a conversation between soul and substance, reminding us that to understand nature is to understand ourselves.
Source: ameyawdebrah.com/
