HOW THREE NIGERIAN ARTISTS REACTED TO THE HAPPENINGS OF 2020.

Bob-Nosa, The Patriot, Acrylic on watercolour paper, 2020.

Mathew Oyedele

In a bid to curb and control the spread of coronavirus in 2020, the Nigerian government announced an indefinite lockdown that would reduce the transmission of the virus and protect the citizens. The lockdown restricted movements, halted business activities, and suspended all leisure, social and cultural activities. It did not leave out artists who usually work in isolation out of its wide-ranging impact. It came as a surprise to some of them. They could neither access their favourite materials nor replenish the exhausted ones. They were left with little or no income as galleries were closed; while exhibitions, auctions and art fairs were postponed. Artists had to rethink their approach to materials, subject matter and concepts in order to adapt to the changing environment.

While the lockdown was gradually easing up, a youthful protest under the theme 'EndSARS' erupted on the streets of Nigeria to demand an end to police brutality, harrassment, extortion, rape, abuse and every other inhumane act from the Nigerian police. The protest unified the strength, skill, dynamism and voices of Nigerian youth but the Nigerian government in its usual lordship and almighty style failed to listen to the demands of the protesters and attacked them instead. The attack culminated in the shooting and killing of protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos.

I spoke with three artists (Bob-Nosa Uwagboe, Kolawole Olalekan and Dare Adenuga) at different times about the impact of these happenings on their practice and how they reacted.

BOB-NOSA UWAGBOE

Bob-Nosa is a fine arts graduate of Auchi Polytechnic. This multidisciplinary artist works out of the Protest Art Studio, a fitting designation given the tenor of his practice; a relentless condemnation of the inhumanity of social and political systems that render people victims. The self-described art activist belongs to a protest subculture devoted to using art as a catalyst for change. His paintings, with powerful and satirical comments on inhumanity, runs the gamut from abstract to representational and are distinguished by intense primary colours applied in large expressive strokes and frequently include collaged images and found materials. Surfaces of his works are scratched with written texts while aerosol paint is roughly sprayed over and across painted forms. Bob-Nosa has had solo exhibitions in Spain, Argentina, Poland and Nigeria. His works were also presented in different contemporary art fairs in March 2020.

Mathew Oyedele: Where were you during the lockdown and the EndSARS protest in 2020 and how did you react?

Bob-Nosa: I was in Poland during the lockdown in 2020 and I was indifferent in a way due to my nature of life and art practice because on a regular day I am always indoor. And, for the endsars protest I was in Lagos.

MO: What are the effects of those happenings on your practice?

BN: The happening of endsars protest in my view was long overdue because the citizens have been pushed to the wall for a very long time and they refused to act. I have constantly been reacting to the gross misconduct of all our uniform men, especially the police via my art for over a decade so I was only surprised to see the citizens finally waking up from their grave.

MO: Going forward, do you think the happenings of 2020 will have any impact on artists and the artworld?

BN: The endsars protest will only have an impact on artists with open minds but most artists are not open minded.

Kolawole Olalekan, What If?, Acrylic on canvas, 2020.

KOLAWOLE OLALEKAN

Kolawole Olalekan (b. 1990, Ondo State, Nigeria) is an artist who works with painting and drawing. He received a B.A. in Fine and Applied Arts from the University of Benin (2013), with a major in painting. Since then, he has practiced as a full-time studio artist. His art uses metaphoric illustrations to capture the nuance happening of everyday life as it unfolds around him. His works can also be viewed as a commentary on society.

His processes are both conceptual and surreal, and he is also spontaneous on how he builds his ideas for art projects. Though Kolawole is yet to have a proper exhibition, his works have gained some local patronage, and have appeared a couple of times at (Sogal) auction. Kolawole lives and works in Lagos, Nigeria.

MO: Where were you during the lockdown and the EndSARS protest in 2020 and how did you react?

Kolawole Olalekan: I was in the same location but I was not doing the same thing. The lockdown came as a shock and we were not prepared; we were prepared for meetings with galleries to talk about exhibitions, showing them what we have and how we can work with them but the lockdown came and shutdown everything. We had to start thinking of other means of getting funds like some grants that were available during the lockdown. I got like two grants and these kept me going because my art is majorly based on experiment and social commentaries in my environment through surrealism and magical realism. The Nigerian government didn't approach the lockdown as if they understand it; they attended to it with their political interests and it affected everyone. I was alone when the lockdown began but a friend came to join me later and we had lots of fun and interesting things to talk about. He made himself available as a model and I did some drawings of him.

The protest came and we expected it to be  revolutionary but not to be hijacked by young people who I would not want to refer to as thugs but as people who lost their dreams. The protest showed us a new Nigeria and how the Nigerian youth are interested in change as well as how they are actively willing to support that change. They are passively interested in politics but actively interested in change and it was interesting to know that Nigerian youth could go extra mile by protesting on the streets because I never imagined that Nigerian youth could take to the street to demand for a better governance. I was part of the people who protested online because I couldn't make it to the protest grounds as a result of personal health issues, so I actually enjoyed the period. It opened my eyes and mind to many possibilities that could happen when people come together and I was able to draw so many ideas from the whole happenings. Lockdown actually gave me the time to study and relate with my friend.

MO: What are the effects of those happenings on your practice?

KO: The protest enabled me to see Nigerian youth in new light. The lockdown also made me understand that we are living in a country where the government, especially this administration does not care about the citizens. And on my practice, I was able to have a valuable time with myself. I was able to think deep about what is really important to me and how I will continue to practice what I love. I was able to do new drawings, explore new materials and new approach in my works and I was happy with the result.

MO: Going forward, do you think the happenings of 2020 will have any impact on artists and the artworld?

KO: I think the protest will have further impact on artists in general because artists like information; we are burden bearers for the society. We always want to see people living in peace, stay happy and live in harmony. We grieve when people grieve, so in a way, we draw inspiration from our environment. I draw inspiration from the happenings from my immediate environment and I feel people's pain easily. So looking forward, the protest will never let us remain the same especially the event of October 20th, 2020. Everytime I pass through that Lekki Toll Gate I still feel that chill, I still hear the silent screams of people that were shot that evening and this will always have an impact on artists either positive or negative.

Dare Adenuga, Lockdown Tour, Rope sculpture, 2020. 

DARE ADENUGA

Dare Adenuga is a graduate of Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, Nigeria. As a student, he participated in various student exhibitions such as Beautiful Nigeria at the National Museum Onikan and Olokun Art festival in Badagary. His works explore human character with reference to their benevolent and malevolent influences on their environs.  He has participated in several exhibitions and art projects such as "The Root" at the National Museum, Onikan, Prince Charles' Royal Visit at the British Council,"Its not Furniture" by the Temple Management Company and many more. Dare is a finalist of the 2017 ARTXPRIZE who lives and works in Lagos.

MO: Where were you during the lockdown and EndSARS protests in 2020? How did you react?

Dare Adenuga: During the first phase of the lockdown, I was preparing to embark on a site project which I could not start at that moment due to the government's COVID-19 guidelines but I started and completed the project at the other phases. The protest actually escalated unexpectedly and I was not in Lagos where I reside. The whole saga was a sad one where I could do nothing else but to rant with an uncontrollable anger on various social media channels just like every other person who believed that that was the only potent weapon at their disposal.

MO: What are the effects of those happenings on your practice?

DA: As an artist whose work cuts across human character and its influences on their environment, the whole event broadened my case studies on the essentials of liberation as humans.

MO: Going forward, do you think the lockdown and the protest will have any impact on artists and the artworld?

DA: Sure! Artists are not supernatural beings or aliens. We operate the art business like all other businesses; we buy materials as others do, create with them, sell and receive legal tenders as others do. These processes became complex as a result of the lockdown and this required that any artist or art firm that would stand out and survive must work harder, think smart and re-strategize. But I believe we will smile at the end.