Artsdiscourse

Ifaka Jesse The violence in Ifaka Jesse’s photographs is raw, dramatic, intense and expressive. They are a reflection of the societal rumbles that occupies the pages of newspapers, screens of televisions and social media walls. He explores social commentaries by listening to social banters and maelstroms in his environment. Jesse, whose works are born out of his passion for the oppressed persons in the society, found out that the society has become comfortable with oppression and humiliation as domestic violence shows no sign of abating. “I once saw a young couple living as rivals under the same roof and nobody said anything,” he says. In the photographs, we see a lot of actions- a hand holds a female victim by the mouth, two hands strangles a female victim by the neck, a foot stands on a female face, an all-men fighting scene and a man strangling another man. They look like they have been stripped out of a movie. If a spectator pays attention, he can begin to ident...

By: Chinezim Moghalu Chris History. Memory. Futurism. As regards “Nsukka School”, the first connotes threshold; the nucleus, reminiscence and experience; the last, a coalescing of aspirations, hope, achievements and manifestations from the present- coupled with acknowledgement of the obvious challenges that escort them. Nsukka School (the department of Fine and Applied Arts, University of Nigeria, Nsukka) after fifty years, have witnessed a robust history which formally spans fifty-six years. In this trajectory, vast significant events and remarkable landmarks have taken place, which becomes rehashing and exhaustible to list. The Art School has effortfully and resolutely survived, in a radically and bold undertone, the coastal and tidal waves that polices an Art School with an ancestral creative ideology, philosophy and pedagogy which opposes and confronts Western art pedagogy- the Uli aesthetics. In like manner, “Nkoli Ka” (recalling is greatest), becomes a veritab...

By: Mathew B. Oyedele His studio walls were barely empty except for a painting that drapes a corner of the studio. He was working on a portrait of two women who wore bright expressions on their faces. I was about to ask him why his works were not on display when he delved into a corner of his studio and took me on a voyage of ankara interaction. I could not refuse the captivating rhythm that encapsulated my mind from his artistic oeuvre. I came across his works through the social media and I was attracted by his intricate use of Ankara as a medium of expression. I studied his works as he uploaded them at intervals and made an appointment to visit him in his studio. “My use of ankara is something that came from the blood. It was a gift from my mother. I think she passed that gift to me indirectly. Instead of me becoming a tailor, I see myself sewing those clothes on canvas”; this was his response when I asked him about his discovery of the medium. Uzoma is not a social co...

Walking into the Quintessence Gallery for the Soulfulness exhibition I was greeted by a host of decorative items that almost made me ask if I was at the right venue. I lingered between the displayed crafts long enough to observe a detour through the staircase at the western side of the hall. Curiously, I joined the detour and listened as one of the artists took the chairman of the exhibition on a voyage of artistic interaction. Gele o dun I tarried on the staircase as I perused the works by a group of artists who cohered to engage in consistent research and inquiries into the realm of robust visual images with boarderless outcomes. I noticed a melting pot of artistic discourse as well as a potpourri of diverse content. Diversity however is appreciated when large volumes of content, thematic approach and subject matters are explored in a single exhibition of many artists. The leader of the group, Kunle Adeyemi projects the unending movement of destiny in the growth an...

The day I swore an oath was a holiday. And it was witnessed by multitude. They stayed in their homes while I swore in their presence. They closed the markets to be at the venue. They know not if I lied. They are curious of the truth. For years, words of my oath binds me. For a day, ceremony of my oath lasted.

Adeola Balogun is a Nigerian contemporary artist who explores his immediate environment for thematic references and materials. This writer met him at his recent exhibition "bubbles of emotions" and this interview occurred.  Not enough for their greed.            Mathew : What informed the theme of this exhibition? Were there things bubbling in your mind? Balogun: My name is Adeola Balogun, a visual artist. Whether you like it or not, there’s no way you can work in a vacuum as an artist. One way or the other the environment contributes significantly to what I do. We are emotional beings and the most important thing is to have your emotions under control. If you look at our environment socially, politically and economically there’s a lot going on and with these you hear all sort of lamentations from people; emotional outbursts. This is because of the fact that people are allowing their emotions to override their sense of judg...

By: Mathew B. Oyedele Omenka Gallery is a three-sectional exhibition space with low ceiling. One should not expect less of contemporaneity in its constant exhibitions. However on the 17 th of June 2017, the room was filled with metals- all scavenged from the immediate environment of an artist. The exhibition has a rather personal theme “ Bubbles of Emotions” and consists of thirty-two sculptures- seventeen of which were hung on the wall while fifteen were placed on the ground, all depicting a set of striking metal sculptures that are borne out of the artist’s perception of his environment. One cannot but notice the arrangement of the exhibited works in a pattern of bubbles. The globular works which are akin to the form of real bubbles bounced in their arrangements into the imaginations of the spectators. In the exhibited collections of Balogun, there are quiet a number of works that are not globular in forms or nature but reveals the same social commentary as the globul...

Since it was you who gave us a clear picture. Tell it to our offspring that we were conquerors. Tell them, how we rebuilt abandoned gates, and how we marched without fear. We were not afraid of death! Because We do not live to die, we actually die to live.

By: Mathew B. Oyedele It is not out of place to say that the euphoria of the inclusion of Nigeria in the oldest cultural biennale still clouds the Nigerian art world with diverse opinions, essays and comments circulating the media through personalities that thread the path of art.  This development has created a platform of discourse among connoisseurs and art enthusiasts in Nigeria and Africa.    Nigerian art is currently witnessing an influx of creativity and has rapidly risen to a phenomenal stage that stamps its feet in global arts discourse. Its energetic artists are constantly pushing and questioning conventional boundaries through research-based works of art and record-setting sales at auction houses. What then delay Nigeria’s appearance at the Venice biennale? African art has largely been under-represented at the Venice biennale with currently only seven African countries out of 54 proposed to be represented with national pavilions in this years’ bienna...

This is my house The shelter of lions The abode of sheep. Built with mud, Raised with stone, My house endures. Each room is a trap Each door is dangerous Each window is egocentric To whom do I complain? My house is divided My corridor is in ruin; My neighbours are helpless My people are clueless My words are useless. Lion prey on sheep Sheep hunt themselves; You’ll know my house when you see it. Who’ll tame you? Lion! Who’ll rescue you? Sheep! Who’ll end the brawl?. Look at my house Standing on the precipice Marching backward, gazing forward.

Ben Osaghae An evening of tribute was organized for the Late Nigerian artist, Ben Osaghae by the Guild of Professional Fine artists of Nigeria at the National Museum, Lagos on the 30 th of March 2017. The programme was preceded by the renaissance of old relationships and the invention of new ones in an evening of a creative discourse as professional artists of diverse forms converged to narrate their various encounter with the late artist. As a founding member of the association and a member of the Society of Nigerian artists, the programme was held to honour the late artist, appreciate his artistic life and to locate and situate his involvement in the Nigerian contemporary art world. It was also to affirm the association’s aim of celebrating Nigerian artists. Creating an ambience of reflection was the slideshow of Ben’s works of art that were enveloped with metaphoric and idiomatic expressions. It took the audience to the immediate gesture of the artist and positioned ...

By Chinezim Moghalu Chris Contemporary Nigerian art has risen dramatically to a remarkable level in that it becomes a vogue in contemporary Nigerian discourse. It is presently witnessing a romantic bent and undertone by its brilliant artists, who are poised at pushing its boundaries beyond its established canons. It is as well experiencing rapid and augmented patronage and appreciation as art exhibitions are held constantly. Lagos, being the nation’s art hub is adding to itself more galleries and art centres. Abuja is also experiencing fast emergency boom. These exciting galleries which are becoming more elaborate, dynamic, gay, and insightful include: Art Twenty-One, Sterling 1, Kongi Harvest, Thought Pyramid, SMO Contemporary, llCD Center, Reddor; the scenescent ones yet relevant. The heightened success of contemporary Nigerian art is credited to, first and mainly, the oil boom at the turn of post-colonialism and early independence era. Patronage was increased. Earli...

Behind your camera   You saw us   At the heart of your lens   We are imprisoned Our nudity, our ensemble   Our demeanour, our charisma   Our physiognomy, our nerd   Immortalized by you Time will change   Moments will pass   We will exist   As objects of immortality Are we the products of art? Or the producers? Or objects of possession? Are we   models or prisoners ? Photo credit: Foto Afrik 

Strands of feathers, homogeneous, co-exists in a mutual habitation of domestic field, dominated by the creatures of the last day. Each symbolizes daily experiences accumulated through bush hunt, humanistic chase, pursuit of opposite sex, dominance of the surrounding milieu and the constant picking of food stuffs. Strands of feathers, clothes in disguise, through which the fowl is protected in the scorching sun and the chilling winter. Strands of feathers, an emblem of beauty, through which the fowl's inner quality radiates and answers the gracious call to fly and perch on the rigid-flexible surface of the earth. It embodies wisdom, insight, knowledge, fears, tears and bravery across time. Strands of feathers, a cloth of many colours, one among the beautiful crests of creation, a culmination of ancient and contemporary wisdom; the protector of its host.  

How I long to be As wise as you! How I desire to be  As logical as you! You are the encyclopedia of history The dictionary of the universe The thesaurus of the earth Sixteen cowries, sixteen pillars Sixteen eulogies, a template Hidden in your sight? Nothing Requests? Answered Difficulties? Solved I have listened to your panegyrics I have seen the horizons of your wisdom I have seen your compassion I am in awe of you.

My beloved house has treated me thus It has led me on the back of the wheels Ocean from my eyes Farewell, I bid. They exist in my head The slaughtering, killing, butchering, Murder. Heads assembled on the mattress Wrappers, west Scarfs, east Breast, dangled. Ahead is a lion Behind is a crocodile Where do I go? Where do I stay? There is no home Just a space to occupy For today I exist Tomorrow I know not.

We are the first born of men We are the model of culture We are the power of the future We were subjugated Tortured, beaten, degraded Devalued, denigrated, starved. Alien cultures imprisoned us White complexions enslaved us We denied not our etymology Away from home Stripped of ancestral elements We became embodiments of culture. Firmly, we held to our creed; "Black is not a colour. It's an attitude A mindset, a way of life." We are Africa.

If one is to judge from the turbulent storm of constant death that has been kidnapping key players in the Nigerian art world, one would say that the art world needs to beef up security against the timeless messenger- death, but how can one guard against an enemy he do not see? Earlier this year, a pseudo-minimalist and metaphorical artist who clothed everyday experiences with idioms in the rendition and delivery of his art answered the gracious home call to hide behind robust visual images and kiss the dust; Ben Osaghae was indeed a lion in the field of art. What can one say about a situation that do not allow one to bid farewell to his beloved people who has engraved his name in the slate of their minds and hangs a bell that rings at the mention of his name? It is arguably a fact that many Nigerian artists exist but there is little or no media attention on their efforts and activities in the sustenance of Nigerian artistic voice. Moyo Ogundipe is one of such artists whose art...

The exhibition, titled “Delta Bush Refineries and Other Stories” by Akintunde Akinleye is a collection of life in the Delta. It shed lights into the activities of the people involved in the vandalization of oil pipeline and asks the fundamental question, ‘why are they doing it? The theory of art as expression seems to be the fundamental concetto of execution in the exhibited works of Akintunde Akinleye. The works clarified and refined the ideas and feelings that are shared with the spectator and bluntly tell them the secrets of their own hearts. He did not set out to criminalize the youths who are engaged in the oil bunkering but to bring Nigeria’s inability to address corruption to the limelight. He is concerned about being socially responsible to tell the stories of burning issues in the country.  It is a known fact that Nigeria is endowed with enormous natural resources and crude oil has arguably been a sustaining factor for the country since its discovery in the vi...