Olayinka Burney-Nicol’s studies began at Long Island University, New York, in 1949 and concluded at the Central School of Arts and Crafts, London. In 1964 she spent a year at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière, Paris.
Olayinka Burney-Nicol was an important artist in Sierra Leone for many years. In 1958 she was appointed Government Artist for ten years and has carried out numerous public commissions including the design of costumes for the famous Sierra Leone Dance Troupe’s world tour in 1964, including the New York Festival, and again in 1971 for a tour in Russia and the United States of America.