Diran Aderinto’s Ìrìn Jìnà Opens Conversations on Migration, Identity and the Realities of Distance in Lagos

With a focus on migration and the often-overlooked emotions associated with it, Aderinto wanted to show a more honest and personal story about migration. The exhibition was created in collaboration with the IKD Youth Initiative and took place from January 28 to 31, 2026.

Ìrìn Jìnà, which means “a distant journey” in Yoruba, draws from Aderinto’s own experience of leaving Nigeria for the UK. The exhibition wasn’t about the excitement of moving from one place to another or perfect ideas of how to live somewhere else. It looked at how migration makes people feel, like being alone and unsure about what might happen.

Migration is about dealing with emotions and adapting to a new environment. The exhibition was more than a presentation. Even after settling in, you never quite feel at home. Migration is a difficult process. It involves feeling isolated and uncertain while adjusting to a new environment and finding a way forward.

Through films and recordings, the exhibition shared the stories of Nigerians in Manchester. These stories told how people migrate, adapt to a culture, and forge their own identities. They also explored how migrants cope with hardship in a new home.

The exhibition space was quiet and calm, with projected films, layered sounds, and fragmented photographs shaped by memory, movement, and reflection. Aderinto used photography, sound, and installation to create an immersive environment that encouraged visitors to think about migration not only as a physical move but also as an emotional and mental journey.

The exhibition showed how migration unfolds slowly over time, affecting people emotionally and psychologically while encouraging reflection on memory, movement, and identity.

“I wanted the piece to feel honest,” Aderinto said at the exhibition’s opening. “When people hear the word ‘relocation,’ the conversation often turns to success or escape, but we rarely talk about what really happens when it comes to adapting to a completely different environment. I wanted to capture the quieter experiences people go through as they learn to navigate unfamiliar spaces.”

In collaboration with the IKD Youth Initiative, the exhibition was also part of an initiative to engage creatives in Ikorodu. Visitors were invited into conversations about migration, identity, and diasporic narratives. The project started a dialogue about moving to a new place, dreams, and the difficulties that accompany it. It didn’t present a ‘perfect’ picture of life.

Many visitors learned something new about loneliness, adjustment, and the burden of migration. Some of the discussions in the days following the exhibition focused on health, identity, and how people’s migration experiences don’t fit what is highlighted on social media. The exhibition provided audiences with a space to think critically about migration stories and social media narratives, as well as challenge common assumptions about migration.

Aderinto started out in film and has since expanded into photography, moving-image, and installation-based practice. His work is characterised by atmosphere, observation, and emotional depth. Ìrìn Jìnà is part of a growing body of work that visually explores memory, Black identity, movement, and emotional geography.

Following the exhibition, Aderinto said he would continue working on projects about migration, city life, and the contemporary Black experience. He intends to continue using film, photography, sound, and installation as he expands his practice in the United Kingdom.