Our Founder

Natalya Mills, Ph.D., a distinguished scholar and cultural practitioner originally from Trinidad and Tobago, has been formally installed as the Chief Èrèlú Awo of Iwaro Ọkà Àkókó in Ondo State, Nigeria by His Royal Majesty, Oba Akande Omiyejola, the Asin of Ọkà Land. Also known by her sacred names Ifáfunmilayo and Eégúnniwura, Mills occupies a multifaceted role as a mother, an accomplished Ìyánifa (female Ifá priest), Ìyá Oje (Eégúngún/ancestor priestess), and a philosopher of art and Yorùbá thought. Her scholarly and creative work spans art philosophy, curatorial practice, Trinidad Carnival, Caribbean cultural studies, dress and costume history, identity formation, and Black body politics. Her research is particularly notable for its rigorous synthesis of Yorùbá epistemologies with Caribbean philosophy, Carnival arts, and diasporic historical frameworks.

Mills serves as the Spiritual Head of Ilẹ Ìjósìn Ifá Òtítọ́ Ilẹ Ayé Temple in New York City, an institution committed to the critical project of (re)membering and (re)claiming West African identity among members of the African diaspora. She is also the founder of Ifá Òtítọ́ Ilẹ Ayé Inc. (IOIA Inc.), a nonprofit organization functioning as a diasporic school of fine arts dedicated to the preservation, revitalization, and transmission of Yorùbá cultural knowledge through interdisciplinary arts, cultural exchange, and innovative pedagogical initiatives.

She earned her Ph.D. in Art Theory and Philosophy from the Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts (IDSVA), where she was recognized as a 2017 David Driskell Fellow. Her academic credentials further include a Master of Arts in Costume Studies: Visual Culture, a Bachelor of Science in Visual Arts Management, and an Associate of Applied Science in Display and Exhibition Design. Mills has been formally recognized for her leadership and cultural impact, receiving the designation “Leadership & Cultural Catalysts in the Caribbean Community” from Congresswoman Dr. Una Clarke and Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, as well as a formal proclamation from New York State Senator Kevin Parker in acknowledgment of her contributions to Caribbean diasporic communities.

Her professional collaborations extend across a wide range of prominent cultural and academic institutions in the United States and internationally, including the Brooklyn Historical Society, the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology, El Museo del Barrio, the Brooklyn Children’s Museum, the Spelman Museum of Fine Art, the Wyckoff House Museum, the Brooklyn Arts Council, Weeksville Heritage Center, the United Nations Headquarters in New York, and the University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras. Mills has published scholarly and critical writings in journals such as Sargasso, Fashion Projects, and The New York Times, and her work has been featured in publications including Retail Design Magazine, Women’s Wear Daily (WWD), Brownstoner, and Views at the Museum of Arts and Design.

An active participant in global academic discourse, Mills has delivered keynote addresses and served as a moderator and panelist at major international conferences, including Black Portraitures (at Harvard University and in Florence, Italy), the College Art Association (CAA) Annual Conference, the Caribbean Studies Association, and the West Indian Literature Conference. She has also held leadership roles as a creative director and contributor for arts and nonprofit organizations such as CaribBEING and YARD CONCEPT#1. Her intellectual and cultural contributions extend to public scholarship through collaborations with the New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, particularly its “From the Reading Room” series, as well as through various podcast platforms.

As an educator, Mills has taught extensively within the City University of New York system, including campuses in Brooklyn and Staten Island, offering courses in Caribbean Studies, history, philosophy, Trinidad Carnival, and dress and identity. Her expansive body of work demonstrates a sustained commitment to critically engaging, preserving, and interpreting Caribbean and Yorùbá cultural traditions. Through both academic scholarship and community-based praxis, Mills advances a nuanced and interdisciplinary understanding of identity, heritage, and cultural continuity within the African diaspora.

Connect with our founder on Instagram @ioia_inc_arts and @chief_erelu_awo