Niké was born in the remote village of Ogidi on the northern frontier of Yorubaland in 1954. Her mother died suddenly when she was only 6 years old, and she and her younger brother, Joseph, were passed from one relative's household to another as they were growing up. During a period when she was living with her great grandmother, Niké learned the arts of weaving and indigo dyeing. It was also during this time that she was forced to undergo the trauma of female circumcision, an experience which she recounts with startling frankness in her biography.

Necessity taught Niké to become a canny trader at an early age. She recounts in her biography the details of childhood transactions which enabled her to clothe and feed herself. During hard times, she resorted to carrying loads of cement at construction sites until the hair on the top of her head was worn away. She acquired the habit of prodigeous labour which has served her well . As Niké approached maturity, her father arranged a marriage for her which she rejected. Rather than submit to a loveless marriage, she and a girl friend ran away to join a travelling theater group. A certain artist heard of the talented and headstrong young woman and was intrigued. He met Niké and enticed her into coming to live in his compound and assist in his studio. Niké learned quickly and excelled at the work. She also became accepted among the growing number of wives in the compound and produced her first child, a son, Olabayo. Because of her charm and intelligence she was given the responsiblity of entertaining clients in the studio. Most of the collectors were expatriates and so her English quickly improved.

However, there was a dark side to life in the compound. Psychological and physical abuse grew more and more severe. Niké's biographer, Kim Vaz, recounts in chilling detail the manipulation, and intrigue that prevailed in the household. For years the wives concealed the state of affairs from the public.

Niké was determined to win her independence. It was not in her nature to confront her husband's violent ways directly. She developed cunning strategies to defeat his purpose and ultimately to achieve success on her own terms. When Niké finally left her husband's compound, many of his wives followed her. The story was widely circulated and people were shocked by the rebelliousness of the women.

Read more of Niké's story as it was recounted by Niké herself to her biographer, Kim Vaz, in The Woman with the Artistic Brush, A Life History of Yoruba Batik Artist Niké Davies