Arts is beyond

Arts is beyond the regulars'
By ozolua Uhakheme
Five years ago, she was the only female art student in a graduating class of nine from the University of Uyo, Akwa-Ibom State. Today, Victoria Udondian, a full time studio artist is among young Nigerian artists with eyes on the future. Udondian, who emerged the best overall graduate in painting in her set and second best in the department, strongly believes that visual art unlike in the past has gone beyond the regular.

She said remaining in tune with the emerging trends in the global art market is vital and unavoidable for any serious artist who wants to be relevant and fulfilled in his profession. "Art has gone beyond the regular to performance art like installation or conceptual art. As a member of the global village, we must as a creative artist catch up with the rest of the world, especially in the new trends of art production," she added.

She observed that the Nigerian art scene is getting more vibrant with the hosting of art auctions, art fairs and summit compared to the past. This, she noted, has also impacted positively on the value of art and the artists in the economy. But she described her post-school experience these past five years as very interesting and challenging. She noted that despite the challenges, she was able to execute some commissioned works that paid her bills.

The national publicity secretary of the Society of Nigerian Artists (SNA) has since leaving art school been experimenting and exploring materials and techniques. Oil according to her, is one medium she loves most notwithstanding her desire to explore or experiment. She disclosed that already she has started preparing for her maiden solo art exhibition coming up later this year in Lagos.

Udondian has participated in group exhibitions and workshops like the Female Artists Association of Nigeria (FAAN) organized exhibition in Lokoja in March, group exhibition held under the Catalyst Women Arts and Science, in UK, the Aftershave workshop in Pankshin Plateau State last November.

Auction: Bruce Palmwine women
By Ozolua Uhakheme

Ten years after the first organised arts auction in the country, the proprietor of Nimbus Art Gallery, Mr. Chike Nwagbogu, has explained why he organised the maiden art auction in Lagos in December 1999. In a chat with THE NATION he disclosed that he wanted a more democratic way of marketing and evaluating of the art without the subjectivity of one buyer or collector. He said the auction was intended to open the art market to a wider audience and maximize the value of the works of art.

"It was designed to take the art away from the rich and the famous. Interestingly, the art auction has opened the market beyond the borders thus raising the bar of the value," he said.

Nwagbogu noted that his fear of a seemingly shrinking purchasing power of the few collectors informed his decision to host the art auction, adding that it was also to serve as a way to cultivate fresh and younger collectors because the few older ones have other priorities to attend to other than art.

Reacting to whether he was fulfilled by the result of the auction, he said: "I just tried the project. I never set any agenda in terms of benefits because I don’t want to be disappointed at the end of the day if things did not work out fine. But above all, I was glad that Bruce Onobrakpeya’s painting, Palm wine Women was sold for 2million naira."

On the on-going repackaging of the Nimbus Art Centre, that has moved from Maitama Crescent to Raymond Njoku street in Ikoyi, Lagos Nwagbogu explained that there are lots of ways of expressing creativity beyond showing paintings in an art gallery. "Whereas we have thousands of ceramists in the county without patronage, we still import ceramic products from Europe.

Auction in Nigeria

How auction raised price of Nigerian art piece to 9million naira
By Ozolua Uhakheme

What opportunities are abound in auction?

For the marketing of Nigerian works of arts, there is the need to have a place where artworks can be freely sold and bought. Such a place over the time, will help in pricing and valuation of art pieces. It will also satisfy the needs of those who require the works of dead Nigerian art masters. In fact, younger generation collectors will love to have the works of old masters. It is only through such a forum that works can be bought or sold.

Without an established system of pricing and exchange, of standardisation, of establishing provinance and letting us have willing buyers or willing sellers meeting at the forum to exchange works of arts, then it will be very difficult for Nigerian works of arts to be marketable. This is because if there is lack of proper marketability of a product, it does not have value. And that is what Nigerian art has suffered until recently when we began to have arts auction. Also, the galleries are now having better marketability with the founding of the Art Galleries Association of Nigeria (AGAN), a body set up to encourage and standardise the art market. So, on that basis, art auction in Nigeria is a very welcome development.

In real terms, how is auction a catalyst for art growth?

In every new system there is always a learning process. One must give kudos to the organisers of past auctions that have taken place. But still, there is need for better arts history research and the proof of providence. We are still at the infancy stage, so it will be very wrong for anybody to criticise because to pioneer any project takes a lot of sacrifices and we must therefore give kudos to those people who have been able to do it because it is not easy at all

What can Nigerian auction houses learn from the likes of Sotheby’s?

In terms of cataloging, we need to do much. Auction is something that is planned for a long time. For instance, between the time the brochure comes out and when the auction takes place is usually very long. There should be at least two months for distribution of catalogues, reserving of prices. And of course, using the telephone system for bidding has become a norm.

Also, video conferencing has been introduced but don’t forget that whatever we are doing here is limited in terms of the infrastructure that is available. So, we cannot but give kudos to those who are doing their best in the circumstance of poor infrastructural facilities and the low IT infrastructure in place in Nigeria.

After these initial outings, can we say auctions have really shored up the value of art?

Yes, I must say so. Before the auctions, the works of Bruce Onobrakpea were never offered N9.5 million. The works of Sina Yusuf were never found, also were works of Ben Enwonwu. Nobody offered Yusuf Grillo’s work for the price it was sold until the auction came up. So, it shows clearly that there was a big demand for some of the masters. It was like David Dale’s plate that was put in a reserve price of N1.2 million but was eventually sold for N2.1 million. That tells you that there was a big demand for the plate of David Dale.

There were stories of alleged price fixing scam in art auctions in the West. Is Nigeria safe from this?

We have not gotten to that stage yet. I know that a reserve price can be put on a work and if it doesn’t go, the work is returned. In fact, there were works that were offered at auction but nobody bidded for them and they were returned to the house. I don’t think that we have gotten to the level of scam that could have taken place in the West.

How was your first day at the Nigerian art auction?

I was very happy because it was something I have been looking forward to; an organised market for arts that will earn us the proper valuation of work of arts. Any serious collector will be very happy to observe the birth of arts auction in Nigeria, because that way you can go back and begin to value the little collection you have. It is easier for you to value and such auction makes you see the collections that are highly demanded and at the same time it makes you reposition your arts portfolio to suit those that are highly demanded.

Again, I was very happy, because it shows that the art industry in Nigeria is now becoming fully grown, with a view to contributing to the development of Nigeria and to raise foreign exchange. You can remember the late Peter Areh cooperated with Bonham to hold an art auction in England during which a work by Ben Enwonwu was sold for 6, 000 pounds. That has raised the bar and if you have a genuine Ben Enwonwu you can look out for the style, the form, the shape, and size, and you can begin to know that you now have something of value that the world would like to have.

Are there competent specialists that can evaluate art works in Nigeria? Personally, how will you ascertain the genuineness and price level of any art work?

Well, there are two ways: One, if the artist is living. Of course, there are two or three of us out there in the market that are either by virtue of training or experience capable of evaluating works of art. Seinde Odimayo is one of such experts who had training in evaluation at Sotheby’s or so. And for some of us who have been buying art for about 35 years we have enough experience to be able to value art. The art auction house that has hosted auction consecutively has data to be able to compare the value of any work vis-à-vis what has been auctioned. Before these auctions, collectors took advantage of artists in terms of the needs of the artists vis a vis their lack of exposure, little exhibition experience and so on. They take advantage of the desperation of the artists and thereby under-price the artists. With this kind of development going on with art auctioning, I think over time, it will be very easy for us to look into past brochures of art auctions and compare and contrast to get an average price at which a work of art should go for.

What are the roles of art historians in this emerging market?

The duties of art historian will include to determine if an art work is fake and to be able to position the work vis-à-vis the productive life of the artist. An art historian on Ben Enwonwu for instance, should know at what period Enwonwu did the Anyanwu, and what material he used and where he did them; and should have an idea of works done by Enwonwu. Don’t forget that the art historian also works with photographs and pictorial representation of works of arts that have been done. He also wants to trace the different developments of the artist and be able to position each work produced by the artists. Art historian is to serve as a counterfeit detector and valuation adviser to whoever is buying or selling.

But what will be the relationship between the collector, artists and auctioneers?

The artist will be a suitor and may want to gravitate towards the auctioneer because he will rather prefer to sell his works directly to the auctioneer than to collectors. I think the art auction house is a pride to the artist and the collector. The collector will like to buy works that he doesn’t have. He will rather want to ensure that the place is vibrant for his works and the auction house is a near-perfect market experience, which has large buyers and sellers. And of course, information is presumed readily given to everybody.

The auctioneer is like a bride that must be courted by the artist and the collector.

Will you want to give out some of your collections for auction?

Yes. I have taken part in three auctions. If I don’t take part in the auctions, the ability to find works in those auctioning process will be limited. I was the first to throw in Yusuf Grillo’s works for sale for Art House auction and Grillo’s work was priced for N5.5 million and everyone now began to look for Grillo’s work. At the second auction, I threw in Ben Osawe’s work of beads and it was priced very well. This last one I refused to throw anything because I believe that other people should contribute but I bought a David Dale plate for N2.3 million because I needed a David Dale plate. And of course, it was a hot bargaining process and because of that the work was over-priced.

What are the impacts of art auction on the Nigerian economy?

Don’t forget that we pay tax whether you buy or sell, and VAT is supposed to be remitted to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS). It allows the conversion of fixed asset into liquid asset, which goes to increase the velocity of transaction in the economy. I think, foreign investors who love Nigerian art will come to the country, and they have started coming from India and Britain. They have been taking part in the auctions that have been organised by Arts House Contemporary Limited.

Foreigners are buying Nigerian arts, which means they are going to convert their pound sterling, or dollars to the naira to buy these works because the works are auctioned in naira. An auction is going to help improve valuation of the naira vis-à-vis other currencies. It will improve our balance of payment between our country and other countries, and it helps improve the net national income of Nigeria. It expands the range of goods and services that are available in Nigeria because if you put down the components of GDP of Nigeria. I doubt if art ever featured. And there will be a sub item called arts contributing to the GDP of Nigeria. So, it is very welcome.

What is the ideal frequency to hold art auction in a year?

I don’t think auction should be held more than twice a year. Don’t forget the buyers are of the same pool of people, who have limited purse and should not be saturated. People should look up to auction. Also, it gives artists enough time to produce good works because when you begin to make auction too regular, artists will begin to churn out junks, just to satisfy the commercial needs of the art auctions.

OKEKE THEODORE

OKEKE UNSONG OLDEST ARTIST
By Ozolua Uhakheme
Unlike his peers Demas Nwoko, Bruce Onobrakpeya, Uche Okeke, Yusuf Grillo etc who studied fine arts when very few did, Theodore Kanaenechukwu Chukwukandu Okeke, 85, a painter, pilot and art teacher ranks among the least known Nigerian artists. Yet, he is the oldest trained and practising artist in the country.
Okeke studied art through correspondence course with the Rapid Result College and EMI School of Careers, both in London before enrolling at the Academia Di Belle Arti, Massa Carrara, Italy (The School of Fine Art) in April 1966.
His trip to Italy to read art did not come on a platter of gold. Six years before leaving for further studies, he held numerous art exhibitions and executed many commissioned works, mostly sculptures. In 1957 for instance, he sculpted a water fountain for Chief A.D. W Jumbo of Bonny, which was unveiled by the then Premier of Eastern Region, the late Dr. Michael Okpara. These creative efforts attracted the government of the region to him. Subsequently, he got a scholarship from the government to study in Italy. His other works include life size statue of Herbert Macaulay in 1963 at the NCNC headquarters in Lagos, life size statue of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe executed in concrete at 187 Niger Street, Port Harcourt in 1964, life size of Owelle of Nkpor, Chief Ogoka Okeke sculpted in 1982.
But his exploits in Italy were not without hindrances. On arriving the Academy of Fine Arts, Florence, Italy, he discovered that the school did not have his choice of material, marble, for sculpting. So, Okeke opted for a change of school to Academia Di Belle Arti, Massa Carrra, Italy
"My desire was to study sculpture in the famous methods of the Italians. But there, marble was scanty. Marble, the material I needed for sculpting in Florence, was not available. There was no marble mine in Florence. As a result, I applied for a transfer to the Academia Di Belle Arti, Carrara. That was where Michealangelo, Pietra Ottecka and other famous sculptors studied and worked. I also wanted to know how marble was found," he recounted.
What is spectacular about Carrara marble in Italy? You may want to ask.
According to him, Carrara has an ancient marble tradition. The peaks that dominate Carrara and Pietrasanta in north central Italy are geologic rarity. There, the mountains are made of marble. Nowhere else in the world can such a concentration of this noble material be found. Substantial marble deposits, the experience and professionalism of local workers and the quality of technology used here have won the district the role of world stone marketplace.
"The ancient Romans exploited local stones for construction and sculpting. Carrara’s white statuary marble is especially beautiful. In 1505, Michealangelo came here to choose blocks of fine-grained marble without any veining or defects, which he used in sculpting some of his most celebrated masterpieces. The ancient art of marble carving did not survive in many places. Yet, thanks to its resources, to the ability acquired by master craftsmen through centuries of experience, and to artists who came here to tap local knowledge, Carrara and Pietrasanta can rightly be called a great marble academy," Okeke, who hails from Ububa Village, Nkpor in Idemili North Local Government Area, Anambra State, said.
While at Carrara, he took evening classes in design, painting, architecture and geological studies of various stones, soils and sands. He described sculpture as his most interesting course, which he left Nigeria to study at the expense of becoming a lawyer or medical doctor.
Beyond change of school, Okeke’s days at Carrara were not easy. Communication barrier was one major setback in his studies. In fact, communication with Nigeria was completely out of the picture, surviving was tough and the worry about the safety of his family members back home, in the wake of the civil war, disturbed his studies. Also, his scholarship was severed because of the civil war. In the heat of these worries, he got some financial assistance from the Italian government, which he complemented with proceeds from sales of his sculptures.
Another challenge that would have compounded his dilemma was the language programme, which would have lasted six months as part of his study, was waived by the school authority. He was fortunate to have English speaking professors as lecturers. Again, a few of the practical courses were also waived for him because he had completed a certificate course before leaving Nigeria.
But as the civil war raged at home, his status as a Nigerian or Biafran citizen in Italy became a big puzzle. At a point, the Nigerian Embassy in Rome invited him and asked to sign an identification paper as a Nigerian citizen. He turned down the request asking the Students Affairs Officer at the embassy "why should I sign a form to identify myself as a Nigerian when I have a Nigerian passport?" When he was told of the secession of Eastern region, Okeke chose to identify with Biafra, an action that cost his scholarship grant.
As if the economic hardship was not enough, the Nigerian Embassy in Rome recalled and repatriated him to Lagos, ostensibly for his refusal to sign the identification paper. On arrival at the Lagos airport, he tried to prove his loyalty to the Nigerian government by presenting a photograph of Herbert Macaulay’s marble bust he sculpted to security officials at the airport. Unfortunately, that did not sway the security men who handed him over to the police to be detained. There he was searched and his 1966 diary was found on him. In it was an appointment he had with Sir Louis Ojukwu (KBE), father of General Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, leader of the break-away Biafra, to erect his statue in Italy. As a result, Okeke became a ‘suspect and dangerous character’ in the estimation of security agencies. who detained him at Ikoyi Prison.
Three weeks after, he was released from the prison following investigation about his case. But one of the conditions of his release was never to go to the Eastern region until the war was over. To Okeke, returning to Italy was more paramount than going to the war zone.
He recounted how he returned to Italy: "I immediately contacted Mr. FSM McEwen of the African Continental Bank, Lagos, who knew more of my affairs as a student in Italy. £100 pounds were then paid, and my passport was released, my travel ticket issued and I flew back to Italy."
Driven by his strong belief in the Biafra project, Okeke enlisted into the Italian Aviation School, Toscana, where he ran a four-month part-time training in aviation. However, running two parallel courses without adequate funding took its toll on him. He resorted to selling his carvings and collecting relief materials as a war refugee. On completion of his aviation programme, he undertook a volunteer service as a civilian pilot with the Biafran authorities from 1967 to 1969 during which he flew in relief materials to the Biafran enclave through the Uli airstrip on the Onitsha and Owerri highway.
However, in 1969, he dumped the volunteer service because it was becoming very risky flying into the Biafran enclave. He then went back to his fine art programme and graduated with diploma and a master of art degree, specialising in Sartura (sculpture), Anatomia Artistica (Artistic Anatomy) and Storia Della’ Arte (World History of Art).
For 14 years, he worked as a lecturer at the Institute Nationale Des Arts (National Institute of Arts), Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Abidjan, in affiliation with the University of Abidjan. He returned to Nigeria in 1984 to take up employment at the Institute of Management and Technology, Enugu as an art teacher in the Fine and Applied Art Department. Among his colleagues then were Chike Ebebe, Chinedu Njoku, late Salvator Onyeanu, Chid Okoye, Ben Onyemaobi and late Anthony Onwughalu.
However, the life and time of Okeke as the oldest living practising Nigerian artist deserve the attention of the art historians who must research into the artist’s professional career and works for generations to learn from. It is now that he is alive that vital information on him and his works can be extracted from him, not when he passed on. In fact, he is not too small to celebrate or honour with an award.

track your car

Track your vehicles, go to sleep

Since its inception in 2006, Fast Track Technology Limited has provided online tracking services for thousands of car owners in the country. Can the cost of tracking equals the trauma victims of car snatchers go through? Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME reports.


Imagine being trailed by a group of teenage armed robbers on your way home from church service on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Unknown to you, a car suddenly pulled up and blocked your way. Behold, armed teenagers emerged ordering you and your family out of your vehicle. First, you contemplated ignoring them. But, in a matter of second, the robbers pulled out their pistols asking you cherish your life and that of your family. While your expectant wife is trying to attend to her three-year old baby that is crying for biscuits, you are being stripped of all your telephone hand sets, money, wallets, ATM cards, wedding rings and other valuables in your possession.
Troubled and frustrated under the scorching sun, you and your family watched helplessly as the robbers drove off with your car. In the midst of that trauma, your wife managed to alert the police and your employer on phone. And immediately, your employer notifies the security firm handling the tracking of your car. Few hours later, police patrol team recovered your car on the outskirt of Lagos. How and why? You want to ask.
Interestingly, the above scenario is a common occurrence these days.
The police were able to recover the car because it was installed with online tracking device that enabled it to be demobilized. Today, not many Nigerian car owners are buying into these vehicle protection and alerts services being provided by security solution firms like Fast Track Technology Limited.
Explaining his company’s mission to offer security solutions to these increasing spates of vehicle theft in most cities in the country, the general manager of Fast Track Technology Limited, Mr. Adir Mizrahi said his firm identified security issues as very fundamental to the socio-economic development of the country. He stated that his company has therefore designed various packages to meet the clients’ security challenges. He noted that the desire to provide these services to Nigerians is in reaction to the growing security risk in the country, which he said, is much more than most Western countries. “From daily reports on security matters in the country today, the need for security solutions like ours becomes very paramount. Also, security risk in Nigeria is higher if compared with other Western countries. So, Nigerians need to be more security conscious,” he said.
Fast Track Technology, a subsidiary of AA Group of Companies was established in 2006 as an IT security solution company and is currently handling the recently launched Lagos state government’s Safe City Project that provides 10,000 Close Circuit Camera facilities across the state and financed by the Security Trust Fund. Mizrahi said his target audience includes the private, the public, corporate sector, military and government but acknowledged that the needs of each differ from one to the other. “There are different segments within the market. Each sector responds to their needs differently. You do not expect the military, for instance, to respond to security issues the same way an individual or corporate body will do. Again, our clients have the advantage of choosing from the series of solution package we offer,” he added.
He stressed that tracking and fleet management service, which is one of the packages from the stable of Fast Track, has been able to reduce the trauma of loosing ones vehicle to armed robbers. He stated that apart from tracking, the service also enables vehicle owners to control and monitor the usage of their vehicles especially when they are driven by teenagers or unreliable drivers. According to him, “I cannot say categorically that there is a drop in theft of vehicles in Lagos since the commencement of online tracking. But I can say that car owners can now go to sleep with their two eyes closed because their cars are being monitored. There is that high percentage assurance of safety and recovery in the event of theft. Sometime, we can track a vehicle after three days.” But, he however warned that the earlier the theft alert gets to them, the better the chances of locating and demobilizing such stolen vehicle, otherwise, if the robber is smart, it might be difficult to track the vehicle.
“We wish to handle all Lagos cars including those of the security agencies like the emergency and ambulance as well as Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Apart from tracking, you can also get alarm service through your telephone handset. You can control the on and off of your car engine, its fuel consumption as well as restrict the movement of such vehicle. All of this is to safe money,” Mizrahi said.
On how far tracking can cover, he explained: “I can track my vehicle in Israel, but it will be expensive for an individual to undertake. Interestingly, I am working with the best network coverage in Nigeria, but there is no one hundred percent securities guarantee any where in the world.


National gallery edifice: Private investors to the rescue
By Ozolua Uhakheme
Assistant Editor (Arts)

There are strong indications that the management of National Gallery of Art (NGA) will be considering private–public partnership (PPP) option for the construction of its multi million naira edifice in Abuja, the federal capital territory. Already, some foreign investors and local partners have indicated interest in the project that was originally expected to be funded by the federal government through the ministry of culture, tourism and national orientation.
In an interview with The Nation, the director-general of NGA, Mr. Joe Musa said the decision to embrace the PPP option became necessary following perceived apathy, paucity of fund and the gallery’s inability to get the approval of the presidency for government’s funding of the project. He explained that the project would take the build, operate and transfer (BOT) arrangement between NGA and its partners. “Two monstrous challenges that have been confronting the realization of the edifice are apathy and funding. And what we have therefore decided is to adopt the BOT option to put up the edifice. I am sure I will flag it off soon because it is a vision the sector needs to reposition the visual art,” he said.
Musa who expressed optimism in the growth of the Nigerian art sector despite the financial meltdown observed that unlike other sectors of the economy, the art market has continued to thrive citing the recent auctions of Nigerian works of art held locally and outside the country. He explained that at a time when most investors are being forced to withdraw their funds from some sectors, patrons of the art are busy investing in the sector with the collection of works of art at major auctions. Last month, a London based auction house, Bonham held an auction of works by leading African artists like Prof. El Anatsui, Bruce Onobrakpeya and Nnenna Okore among others.
“Global financial meltdown has never affected the art. Patronage of the art is on the rise while art auctions are being held across the globe. In January this year, Sotheby’s auction house in London said the new emerging art market is African art market. Notwithstanding the low level of art appreciation n the continent, visual art remains a significant instrument of economic development. Nigeria has an art market and the secondary section of it, which is the auction, is already evolving,” he added.
Continuing, he said: “What we must do is to liberalise and deregulate the market. The issues of the 60s are not what obtain today, especially the volume of artists’ works in the market. The Nigerian art is at the point of breaking away from its old shackles. The sector is worth investing in. Cable Network News reported African Regional Exhibition and Summit on Visual Art (ARESUVA) and it got a good coverage.”
He disclosed that NGA is organizing a world tour of Nigerian arts beginning in Egypt in August this year. According to him, each tour will feature 15 best living Nigerian artists’ works. The world tour that will move to Italy, Australia and US, he said, is to serve as another platform to project and expose Nigerian art to the global art market.
On the second African Regional Exhibition and Summit on Visual Art, (ARESUVA) holding later in the year, he regretted that unlike the maiden edition last year, this year’s summit might suffer some setbacks because of poor funding. He recalled that last year, NGA got about N200million to hold the summit but has so far received N20million for this year’s edition. “From January till April, ARESUVA sub-head on the budget had remained zero. Almost all our programmes are not going to be funded by government, so we must depend on our ingenuity to raise fund. However, the challenges are there, but it takes human being to overcome them and achieve a milestone.
“ARESUVA was a huge success but now we are fighting several battles within the system. It is easy to use the private sector to assess our programmes, but the public sector has its own rules. We came to effect a change and that we must achieve. There are several influences we must contend with,” Musa said. He stressed that repositioning the art is more challenging in these days of global financial meltdown because in time of cost cutting, arts suffers. He noted that for sustainability, ‘we must continue to lobby the assembly in the face of apathy in order to push art appreciation.’
Commenting on the newly reconstituted board of directors of National Gallery of Art, the D-G hinted that the appointment of the Society of Nigerian Artists (SNA) as one of the institutional members of the board was made possible because of the doggedness of the minister and permanent secretary in the ministry. The D-G who is also a practising artist, noted that unknown to many, the SNA slot on the board has always been in the available but not implemented by past administration.










Jos museum cries for re-birth
In less than few months of assuming office as curator, National Museum Jos, Mrs. Carol Ezeokeke is battling to re-orientate the staff. But the poor state of infrastructure at the museum is one major challenge, reports Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME
The curator of National Museum, Jos, Plateau State, Mrs. Carol Ezeokeke has decried the poor state of infrastructure at the museum, a situation she said, demands urgent attention of the authority in order to save the institution from total collapse. She disclosed that because of ageing, virtually all the buildings at the nation’s oldest museum are leaking including her office. Ezeokeke also identified mobility as another major challenge she had to contend with since assuming office as the curator of the museum. “My greatest challenge is mobility and the structures are ageing. Even my office is leaking. The buildings are all leaking, from my office to the library, accounts, store etc. In fact, the underground store is being threatened,” she said.
But in order to overcome the challenges, she has charted a new road map starting with the hosting of a re-packaged international museum day celebration last month. She initiated a three-point agenda upon which she anchors all her activities to revive Jos museum, citing re-orientation, restructuring and repositioning as the agenda for better service delivery to the public.
In an exclusive interview with The Nation, Ezeokeke said she met a work force with very low morale, a defeatist and poor attitude to work which, she added negated individual productivity and overall performance of the museum. She explained that in order to get the best from the workers she had to start with motivational strategies, using different approaches of orientation and taking advantage of the strength of the workers to achieve results.
According to her, the new road amp became necessary because she met a wok force of low morale and defeatist attitude to work. “First assignment was to motivate and re-orientate the workers. In fact, there are four museums in one in Jos. I had to give the staff a new orientation because our size must be o strength. The Jos Museum must move up and I told the staff I will put square peg in square hole, though I was deployed from the Institute of Museum and Archeological Studies, Jos. That was the first major step followed by the restructuring. She noted that after the international museum day celebration on May 18, she saw a new zeal and dedication among the workers, adding that to say she has committed followers, is to say the least.
She described museum as a product of tourism and destination, which must be kept alive.
This year’s museum day in Jos was celebrated with a difference. The event featured six local government councils in the senatorial zones presenting their traditional cuisines, dance drama, fashion show, poetry and football match. The event was designed to showcase the intangible heritage of the councils as well as other councils outside Jos.
To further attract tourists to the museum, the Coronation Hill, which lies within the museum premises is being considered for development by the museum authority in Jos. Atop the plateau is a flat landscape capable of accommodating the structures. But there is a rugged foot path leading to the hill top that requires improvement for convenient walk.
“We are reviving it for tourism destination. Each nationality in the state can erect a structure reflecting their identity. For instance, the Bassa people in Jos East are very interested. The hill, which provides an aerial view of Jos, will when developed, serves as recreation facility as well as geographical and environmental centre for learning,” she said.


In Umuahia, it’s children feast
By Ozolua Uhakheme
Assistant Editor (Arts)

‘Our great love for our future leaders cannot be quantified in material terms. We owe them every responsibility to bring them up in the fear of God and provide quality leadership, training and education to them for the actualization of their hidden roles of fatherhood, rulership and role modeling.’ This was the position of Director, Research and Education, National Gallery of Art, Dr. Kweku Tandoh while speaking at this year’s children day celebration organized by the National Gallery of Art, Umuahia, Abia State.
Dr. Tandoh stated that NGA in its mandate to fish out talents in visual art discovered in the children, great potentials, which in all proms and caprices are jewels in the hands of a prosperous nation. It is in this regard, he said, NGA designed the children day activities to provide platform for the actualization of their talents, as well as access to instructors who would expose the children to information and learning instructions capable of harnessing their innate abilities.
This year’s event was held by NGA in collaboration with the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Pacesetter FM 103.5 with supports from numerous sponsors like Hoeffers Restauant and Fast Food, ABC Transport Abia Line Transport, Seven Up Bottling Company, Eastern Comfort Hotel,




‘I left Nigeria an angry young man’
At a time many young Nigerians are ready to pay any price in order to travel to Europe and the US, Victor Ehikhamenor, a writer, painter and photographer shunned a US scholarship/fellowship in order to serve his country. Last year, he won the prestigious Breadloaf Writer’s Conference scholarship, which he turned down in order to NEXT newspaper in Lagos. He spoke with Assistant Editor Arts OZOLUA UHAKHEME on his planned solo art exhibition, Mirrors and Mirages and why he decided to return home twelve years after he left in anger.

Until very recently, Victor Ehikhamenor’s name never rang a bell within the Nigerian arts circuit. He is not a product of any of the Nigerian arts schools. He could not study arts in Nigeria because his high school did not offer arts. But in far away US, he has in recent time been in the mainstream of arts producing abstract and symbolic works with unmistakable ties to his Nigerian background. He has had numerous exhibitions with strong following mostly in US and later Nigeria.
Beyond visual arts, he has traversed other genres of the arts with several short stories, anthologies, documentaries to his credit. He has also produced over nine book covers among them are for publications by award winning authors like Chimamanda Adichie and Helon Habila,
In May this year, Ehikhamenor will unveil his recent collection of works in a solo art exhibition tagged Mirrors and Mirages at Terra Kulture on Victoria Island in Lagos. His works are eclectic because he creates artworks from everything and anything. He is continuously reinventing himself, which is very evident in his new body of works. “My past and present environments have continuously influence on my works. Growing up in a natural environment and mentally colonised country, which is deep in both African religion and Christian belief, has been a big source of influence to my work,” he explained, noting that the solo exhibition is meant to examine the benefits he has received from Nigeria and what Nigeria has gained from him as an artist. But the mirage aspect of the show is to highlight the disappointing thing about his continued search for the real home he has been longing for while in the US.
Despite the disappointment, the Edo State born graduate of English and Literary Studies is hopeful of a better and safer Nigeria, saying no country anywhere in the world is crime free. Since returning to Nigeria in June 2008, Ehikhamenor has been faced with the stark reality of the disappearing moral values in a society he thought would be a home. “I came to Nigeria at a period I was longing to return home. My working for NEXT newspaper was a catalyst for my coming home. There is a whole lot to be done here. The need to impact the expertise in developing Nigeria informed my decision. However, those attractions (food, masquerade, drink, music, folklores) of home have disappeared,” he said.
But home has remained a mirage after he escaped the chaos and insecurity that characterised the Abacha’s administration. And today in the face of persistent abuses, Nigeria as a home is still a mirage. “At 49, we are still a test-tube baby. However, we cannot give up. I know it is home, and I can survive here,” Ehikhamenor assured in spite of the growing misconception about the country.
As a former University of Maryland scholar and lecturer in the United States of America, he is happy to come back to his native country. Continbuing, he said: “This is great that I can come back to my homeland and to find a new means of expression, and to be part of a new newspaper. For me to take this giant step from the world of fine arts, to a totally new medium (print and web, and the business of news) is right on target as far as my professional development is concerned. I am learning much already, and the learning curve is quite high, but I am up to the challenge.”
The Creative Director of NEXT newspaper described art as the biggest cultural expxort of any nation, but observed that lapses in the country could be frustrating. He stressd that artists must examine the content of their works and how they present them becuase potential buyers of artworks must first be attracted to the work before deciding on whether to buy or not.
Ehikhamenor is a holder of Master of Science in Technology Management, and an international award-winning writer, poet and photographer. He was awarded a fellowship by University Of Maryland, College Park for an MFA in 2006. Before graduating, he won the historic prestigious Breadloaf Writer’s conference award, which he turned down to join NEXT newspaper. “I have to make history in my own country, Breadloaf can wait, plus I know I can always win the award again” he said of his refusal to honour the award..
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‘My solo is my testimonial’
To most visual artists, a thousand group art exhibitions cannot equal a solo show. Every studio artist finds it very fulfilling holding a solo exhibition than participating in a series of group shows. Ajene Isegbe, one of the successful sculptors in Benue state did not agree less in this interview with Assistant Editor, (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME.

After working for six years at the National Gallery of Art (NGA), Ajene Isegbe, who is now a Markudi-based practising studio artist has rediscovered fresh vistas in the composition and presentation of his arts works, especially public arts. Also, his interest in preservation and restoration of such works is one area he has found strong passion since going into full time studio practice almost a decade ago. His first major commission was an outdoor sculpture of Aper Aku in Markudi, Benue state capital. The statue of the late Joseph Tarka at the J.S Tarka Foundation and the national coat of arms are among his other commissions.
Unlike most of his peers in the academia, the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria trained artist finds fulfillment in studio practice. He said he is not very keen in pursuing post graduate programme in arts noting that the only post graduate programme he desires to pursue now is preservation and restoration of art. “I don’t find higher degrees in arts as the ultimate. I can only go for training in special areas like preservation and restoration of modern works and antics. It is a specialized aspect of art management that is relatively not very popular here in Nigeria. Again, only one or two institutions in the country offer such training. In fact, that is where my heart is,” he declared.
Perhaps worried by the state of neglect of the nation’s heritage and art collections, Isegbe is determined to get the special training in order to assist in changing the uncaring attitudes of culture workers to priceless works of arts. He observed that a good percentage of artworks in national collections are not well preserved. He noted that the storage conditions of these works are not ideal thus making the works vulnerable to loss in value.
In an interview with The Nation, Isegbe described art appreciation in Benue state as very encouraging adding that some individuals in the state spent millions of naira for the execution of sculptural works in honour of their beloved parents. Beyond that, textile design is another vibrant sector of Benue art and culture, which has the red, black and white stripes hand made textile commonly used by the people of the state.
Benue State, known as food basket of the nation, according to him can boast of the likes of Akume and Justice Kastinalu who are emerging collectors in their own right. He hinted that Governor Gabriel Suswan is considering the creation of a desk for the special assistant to the governor on arts in the state. Interestingly, Isegbe produced a five-by-four feet metal sculpture, an abstract piece showing a food basket being presented by a female hand decorated with bangles. The sculpture which is made from metal scrap covered with fibre resin is suitable for both indoor and outdoor display. The metal was one of the biggest exhibits at last year’s African Regional Exhibition and Summit on Visual Arts (ARESUVA) in Abuja.
Commenting on the indiscriminate mounting of low quality public arts in some Nigerian cities, Isegbe said that in the composition and presentation of any public art, the pedestal (base) upon which a sculpture stands must not swallow the piece. This, he said, is to allow the pedestal to remain as support that will enhance the throwing up of the work for visibility. “If the contrary is the case, then the base will assume the position of the work on show. And that is not an ideal presentation format,” he added.
To most exhibiting artists, holding a debut solo art exhibition is a measure of maturity, especially when it is holding after long years of studio practice. So, to Isegbe, holding his first solo art exhibition, which will mark his 50th birthday celebration is one project too dear to his heart. The retrospective exhibition will hold in Markudi in November 2010. He described it as an appraisal of a sort that will feature selected old and current works he did since he left the university in 1983. “I thank God the journey has been successful. The only missing link is the solo art exhibition I am planning. The exhibition will serve as an appraisal of my journey so far in the arts. I love arts and I have been determined to remain focus in arts. My joy is that I am an artist and I never regret being a sculptor,” Isegbe recalled, disclosing that work on his private gallery located in Markudi would soon be completed.

Eyo salutes TOS in colours`
By Ozolua Uhakheme
Assistant Editor (Arts)
With less than four days to the hosting of the popular Eyo festival, hundreds of all-white-metal sculptural pieces depicting Eyo masquerader as well as colourful banners and posters heralding the festival are dotting most major streets on Lagos Island. This year’s festival will hold at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos beginning from 10am in honour of late Chief Theophilus Owolabi Shobowale Benson, a renowned lawyer and Nigeria’s first information minister. Already, some designated luxury buses plying the BRT lane have been assigned by the Lagos State government to transport people to and fro the event venue free.
And in preparation for the Saturday festival, Governor Raji Fashola was last Sunday presented with the traditional staff of Eyo for blessing. The ceremony, which was preceded by a meeting of the planning committee to review participations for the festival featured the leader of the Okolaba, the Eyo Adimu conclave, leading other conclave members to present the staff to the governor and pray for peace and prosperity of the state.
According to the programme the Eyos is expected will file out in order of seniority featuring Eyo Adimu, the Laba, Oniko, Oand Agere. Ologede, all identified by the colours of their hats. But on Friday, the palace of the Oba of Lagos, (Iga Idungaran), will host a music show accompanied with drinking and winning all through the night.
But on Saturday, commercial activities on Lagos Island will literarily be at a standstill as Eyos from different families will flood the city, thus adding colours and spectacle to the festival.
Commissioner for Home Affairs and Culture, Mr. Tunde Balogun described Sunday’s presentation as (Ikapa ceremony) a traditional homage to whosoever is the head of Lagos Island and the governor happens to be the highest ranking person.
The Eyo masquerade has since inception always been celebrated with pomp and pageantry with people from all works of life attending the event. According to reports, it was introduced to Lagos in 1828 by the Ijebu traders in order to celebrate important personalities as well as to commemorate significant events. The celebration of the Eyo festival depends on the reigning traditional ruler of Lagos who has the power to authorize the celebration of the festival.
As in Chieftaincy title, where there is hierarchy of Chiefs there is an order of recognition and supremacy in the Eyo group starting with Eyo Adimu, the supreme head, Eyo Laba Alaketupupa, the police, Eyo Oniko, Onigemo, Eyo Ologede, Olugbani, Eyo Angere, Omo Olokun. All these are the major and well-known Eyo groups. Eyo Iga comprises of other Eyo from the recognized palace in Lagos such as Eyo Bajulaiye, Eyo Etti, Eyo Faji, and Eyo Elegushi. All the members of the Eyo groups wear white costumes and are distinguished by the patterns of their head gear. For instance, Eyo Adimu uses white head gear with black spots, Eyo Laba Alaketupupa uses red with white spots, Eyo Oniko uses green with black spots and its Osha wears Iko (Rafia), Eyo Ologede uses green head gear with black spots and the Osha wears dried banana leave, Eyo Angere uses fanciful colours for its head gear, Eyo Angere attaches two long sticks to its legs making it very tall and walks around greeting people.
The costume of a typical Eyo which ensures uniformity of all Eyo groups comprises of Aga (cap), Iboju (face cover), Agbada (top wear), Aropale (Elongated wrapper), Opambata (Staff ).before the d-day of the festival, a five day sensitization of public by group parade according to their hierarchic in which each group perform on a separate day. The construction of Agodo by Laba at designated spot, some meters away from the king’s palace. Imoku is where an imagery of the dead is prepared for the entire Eyo masquerade to pay homage on the day of parade.
It is a rule that every non member of Eyo group is required to knee down when Adamu is on parade in order to receive blessing. Part of the fun of the festival is beating of people with the staff (Opambata), greeting of notable personalities present at the occasion, Aro recitation, Ikapa procedure, drumming and dancing, and visitation to Agodo for Gbedu by Eyo group.


Painting to save women
By Ozolua Uhakheme
Assistant Editor (Arts)

Twelve years after holding her last solo art exhibition, Reflections, Tinu Olabanji, one of the modern Nigerian female artists, made a return to the exhibition circuit with a solo exhibition of paintings, Red Shift, at the National Museum, Onikan Lagos, between March 28 and April 2, 2009. The central themes of Olabanji’s works were the travails of contemporary African woman and the impact of the vices on the society. As a way to seeking redress of these vices, she uses her paintings to draw attention to the many issues affecting the woman.
Driven by the passion to promote a society where women are treated fairly and equally like their male counterparts, Olabanji, who made strong return to studio work in 2006, said: “The plight of women, especially in Africa, has been my burden since I was a quite young. I have had questions, many that my young mind could not find the right words to frame.” Red Shift, which featured about 50 works of paintings in pastel and pencil, is an effort in the direction of a paradigm shift that will result in the fulfillment of lives of African women.
Dry Season, a pastel piece, shows a pregnant woman in company of her two children seemingly scavenging the kitchen shelves for food to cook. For the woman, the empty shelves of the kitchen are symbolic of a dry season when there is little or no food in stock. The anxiety on the faces of the woman and her children shows that there seems to be no hope. This situation is a common experience among many homes in the country toady, because women are not empowered to cater for dry the season.
The red colour actually reinforces the hardship and danger facing the family. Even the unborn child is likely going to suffer from the dry season. Another indicator that all is not well in Dry Season is the composition of the forms, especially the limbs and necks of the human figures, while the shelves are very empty without any evidence of life.
Closely linked to Dry Season is He Is Not Back, another pastel painting that dwells on the trauma many women pass through in the hands of uncaring husbands. The artist captures the emotional pressure a nursing mother goes through in the middle of the night, trying to wait for the husband: staying awake till around 2 am, staring at the wall clock hopelessly. Another burden on her is the care for the kids who are also awake. The well-dressed bed lying empty with two pillows indicates that the woman has not been able to sleep, neither the kids too. Worry, fear and perhaps uncertainty are reflected in the colour scheme used by the artist.
But unlike others, It’s Positive, truly shows the other side of a woman who is waiting for the fruit of the womb. The painting depicts the happy mood of a woman who has been anxiously waiting for the day she will be positive to pregnancy test. It shows a woman with a broad smile and giving thanks to God. One can see that her joy knows no bound. It therefore means that her mood would have been horrible if the result of the pregnancy test was the reverse. Other works exhibited at the show include Let’s lead them aright.
Olabanji studied Fine Arts at the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, majoring in painting in 1982 and won three awards including the best overall student. Since 1982, the plight of African women has constantly been the focus of her paintings.


‘Abuja is a colossal failure’
Paris. New York. London. Rome. These are capital cities that double as world tourism destinations. Sadly, Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, lacks the character of a world class city…

Senator Anthony Agbo, vice-chairman, Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory (FCT), is not a loud legislator. But he is unequivocal in matters of national interest. The former Speaker of the Enugu State House of Assembly and one-time Finance Commissioner in Ebonyi State and proprietor of the Olive Gate Hotel, Enugu, describes Abuja as a colossal failure compared to other world tourism destinations. Senator Agbo spoke with Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME, in Enugu.

What is your take on hospitality business?

“When you talk of hospitality, you are talking of tourism, placing your nation on a trade platform of world tourism, showcasing what you have, hosting people and allowing tourists to appreciate your country’s environment and heritage.
If foreigners are visiting your country, they will stay in hotels and what they see in those places will give them the impression about the people and the country. This is the reason why our hospitality industry must rapidly improve on its environment and services. There is the need to make use of creative art, high level of landscape and environmental beautification.
What do you think of the project to re-brand the nation?
The angle they are coming from does not appeal to me because it cannot work. Re-branding is not something you do in the media. You start re-branding by recreating the environment to change the psyche of the people. Nigerians need to think right; imbibe the queue culture; beautify their environment; ensure safety of life and property and make their cities world destinations. Also, we must create those elements that will attract people to the country.
A country where armed robbers can kill 25 people in a day and it attracts a footnote on the television and even the President will not make a statement deserves more than re-branding. That incident alone should be a national tragedy that should be on CNN. Are we saying life is so cheap here?
Will you want to re-brand Swat Valley in Pakistan as a tourism destination? Will you re-brand Mogadishu in Somalia? And you expect tourists to go there and die in the hands of terrorists and Moslem fanatics? You cannot re-brand Nigeria in the media. You re-brand it by changing the psyche of the people, changing the Nigerian environment; ensuring security of life and property, and effecting changes in everything we do, including restoring infrastructure like electricity and water. How do you re-brand darkness? Do you tell people that what you are seeing is light not darkness? That is a funny thing. I think Dora Akunyili has got it wrong this time.
Is there a way out?
The way out is what I said earlier. If you want to re-brand Nigeria, we must first start to think right, behave right, then recreate the environment and make it attractive. Nigeria is the biggest black nation in the world. If you cannot see anything great in Nigeria, it means the black world has nothing to offer the world. So, we should create a destination in Abuja or Lagos. After all, Dubai started recently but today it is competing with Paris and London. We can do it. It is a matter of the brain. And we have the money to do it.
What makes the economy of a nation vibrant is how many foreigners that visit that country to spend their money. Every weekend, hundreds and thousands of Nigerians travel to Europe to spend their money. These countries have made their environments attractive, why can’t we create such an environment so that foreigners will troop in. Oil alone cannot give us the money we want; it is when you have hundreds of thousands of foreigners spending their dollars here that the economy will grow.
What is missing in Abuja as a tourism destination?
I am sorry to say that Abuja as an international African city is a colossal failure. There is no attraction in the city. Abuja master plan must be faulty. Abuja is now congested and it is barely 30 years old. The highest you find on its roads is four to six lanes. But if you go to Europe, you will find cities designed 300 years ago having 16 lanes. In Abuja, the architecture can’t attract any foreigner.
What differentiates a leader? All empire builders, be they democrats or dictators, have one thing in common: they create a landmark in their country that will be a selling point to the rest of the world. In Africa, you can’t find such leaders.
In Abuja, there are no gardens with sculptural monuments to attract tourists. Tourists pay to visit the Eiffel Towers in Paris and it attracts more than five million tourists yearly. This is the way it is in European countries.
So, Abuja is without life?
Culturally, there is no life in Abuja. Nothing can make a foreigner to purposely buy an air ticket to visit Abuja and spend his money. When you have that kind of a city, it is not part of the world community. It can only belong when it builds an environment that will attract people. Even if you are talking of foreign investment, you cannot tell people to go and invest in Afghanistan, Somalia or Congo for instance. People invest where they know people from across the world will come and patronise their investment. So, when you create the environment, foreign investment will follow. Unfortunately, you hear Nigerian leaders wooing investors to our country when the environment is not friendly enough. It is a shameful thing to do because you do not beg people to invest. When you create the right environment, investments will flow in.
Is the Senate initiating laws to redress all these?
Well, you know the legislature is a different arm of the government. In the legislature, you talk but cannot execute. If you watch the Senate proceedings, you will see the nationalistic spirit in Nigerians. But when it comes to execution, these things do not show. You see senators flowing with ideas about what should be done for the country to be better. But after saying it, it ends there. The legislature cannot execute any project. They do not have the power to do anything other than to talk. The problem is with the executive.

Can we link this to budget implementation?
Budget implementation is another problem. Our budget is not revolutionary at all. Nigerian budget has become a routine thing. Every year, it is the same story; repair of roads, provision of electricity supply and so on. However, the more money you approve, the less result you get.

Was there no Abuja beautification project?
I don’t know if there was a beautification project but if there was, it ended in rhetorics. When you are talking of beautifying Abuja it has to be a revolutionary thing. Abuja is still a riot of traffic lights and electric poles. Why can’t we create poles that disappear underground in the day and come up with light at nights? We can use light to decorate the city because it is a tourist attraction on its own.
Prospect of mass transit facility in FCT
Abuja has a lot of mass transit schemes. But the quarrel I have with the schemes is that they should get artists to design the buses and cabs such that if a senator or minister is passing, he can drop his car and jump into such bus or cab. That is how to create wealth. There are simple things you do and people will be interested and will start buying into it.

Beyond buses, can there be light trains in the future?
The authorities are working on that. When we came in, we started serious agitations for the train system because Abuja is the only city that does not have a train system.

Will that not be too capital intensive?
Modern light trains don’t cost much. In fact, they cost what the ugly ones will cost. If you want to decongest Abuja city, get the trains and buses working. And only a few people will use their cars. If a bus can move 5,000 people a day, a train can move 20,000 people a day. You will be making more money.

Some critics have observed that not many bills have been passed by the Senate since its inauguration in 2007. What is your take on this?

The National Assembly has many distractions. You cannot compare the legislature you have in Nigeria with that of Europe because in Europe, everything is standardised. And all the basic needs are available and nobody raises motion on electricity supply. Nobody will debate on bad roads. The problems of the country take much time of the legislature’s agenda and only a little time is reserved for the passing of the bill. There are so many bills pending but they have gone through first and second readings. There are so many distractions. The social and economic problems of Nigeria take the time of the legislature at the expense of doing real legislating. This is the problem.

Why is it so?
The reason is because this has been an unworkable system. Distraction is one reason for the slow pace of the legislature, otherwise so many beautiful things are laying there but they will be attended to. Corruption is everywhere and every government parastatal is in this mess. And the system is a riot of lawlessness.
How many bills have you initiated?
I have three bills. They have gone through the first and second readings. There is a bill on Nigeria honours award. It is to enable the National Assembly to award honours on deserving individuals as it is done by the US Congress with the America convention award. It is the highest honour in US given by the President but administered by the Senate. I raised this bill because the national honours award is not standardised. It is a case of the governors sending in names of nominees and any name they bring automatically gets the award. But I crafted this bill in a way that the standards can be compared to that of developed world and for you to merit it means you can merit a Nobel Prize.

Do you think the Nigerian factor will make it work?
For the committee on the award I recommend religious leaders, one international statesman, one Catholic Bishop and two Moslems, who may not be Nigerian. Recipients can be the likes of Kofi Annan, Nelson Mandela, because it is not restricted to Nigerians only. The award is a way of projecting Nigeria. For instance, if the Nigerian Senate is giving an award to a world leader and invites diplomats to the ceremony, it will showcase Nigeria. And Nigeria will be read all over the world. Honouring great people will make others to work harder. Today, people want to beat the laws to make money because there is no culture of hard work. Everyone wants quick money, but when you start honouring hard work, everyone will begin to appreciate hard work.

What is the second bill about?
The second bill is about National Corporation for society’s federation. This is to centralise corporate institutions in Nigeria like the micro-finance banks. The body will liaise with international bodies and corporate agencies for borrowing of funds. The third one has to do with Professor Ikele Oyinbo. He is a Kogi-born Nigerian based in America who made the greatest discovery, commonly called the Theory of everything. It is the highest discovery in science. When the discovery was unveiled in 1999, I bought a space in Guardian Newspaper, to write a letter to President Obasanjo. That is the highest discovery in science and when Einsten died, he wrote a will that his only regret in life was that he could not discover the unified faith theory. It is a single equation that can solve the whole problem in the universe. Every problem will be subjected to that equation, Einsten laboured for 95 years and died and he could not discover it. Until the discovery, America, France, Japan, Russia and China commissioned their scientists to discover it. Eventually a Nigerian did it.
The essence of the bill is to establish an institution which will understudy this discovery and examine all the practical applications for Nigerians and to know the benefits and implication. In Europe now, they have set up a committee comprising the highest level of scientists and lecturers who are working on the discovery. But a Nigerian discovered it, nobody cares.

Has it passed through the first reading?
It has passed through first reading, but not yet scheduled for second reading.

What do you foresee as the handicap to the speedy passage of the bill?
The bill is a very strong one; Professor Oyinbo is from Kogi State, while I am from Ebonyi. I have concern for my country. The bill will be passed when it is eventually scheduled.

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Have you started lobbying other politicians?
What we usually do when a bill is scheduled is that you start moving around your colleagues to lobby them. I am waiting for it to be scheduled after which I will lobby members in the Senate. I was happy when my bill scaled the second reading because none of them spoke against it. When we finished I went straight to my house and started drinking.
Are you an art connoisseur?
I am not sure if I qualify as an art connoisseur. But I know what art means to the world, I know how civilised art shows are. Art is a statement and the real work of art is the statement behind it. Art is not just an ordinary painting, what makes it an art is the hidden statement behind it. I like hidden knowledge; I like art for the words it creates. An artist creates images just like God but the only difference is that they cannot put breath in it. That is why art is appreciated all over the world. But here in Africa, we are ignorant and nobody cares about the artist, even the leaders don’t even understand art.

How many artists do you have their works in your collection?
I am friendly with artists. I read about them and there are some that I have not got their works. I read their biographies and buy books about them.

How have you touched the life of your constituency since your election?
It will be two years we were inaugurated in the Senate. I have spent only four weekends outside my constituency since I became a senator. I spend most of my weekends in my constituency. I have not travelled outside the country for any reason. In fact, I don’t enjoy travelling out because when I see the way things work out there, I get angry. So, every weekend, I go home and stay with my people and share ideas on how to solve their pr

AGN board sacks Ejike

Jos museum cries for re-birth
In less than few months of assuming office as curator, National Museum Jos, Mrs. Carol Ezeokeke is battling to re-orientate the staff. But the poor state of infrastructure at the museum is one major challenge, reports Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME

The curator of National Museum, Jos, Plateau State, Mrs. Carol Ezeokeke has decried the poor state of infrastructure at the museum, a situation she said, demands urgent attention of the authority in order to save the institution from total collapse. She disclosed that because of ageing, virtually all the buildings at the nation’s oldest museum are leaking including her office. Ezeokeke also identified mobility as another major challenge she had to contend with since assuming office as the curator of the museum. “My greatest challenge is mobility and the structures are ageing. Even my office is leaking. The buildings are all leaking, from my office to the library, accounts, store etc. In fact, the underground store is being threatened,” she said.
But in order to overcome the challenges, she has charted a new road map starting with the hosting of a re-packaged international museum day celebration last month. She initiated a three-point agenda upon which she anchors all her activities to revive Jos museum, citing re-orientation, restructuring and repositioning as the agenda for better service delivery to the public.
In an exclusive interview with The Nation, Ezeokeke said she met a work force with very low morale, a defeatist and poor attitude to work which, she added negated individual productivity and overall performance of the museum. She explained that in order to get the best from the workers she had to start with motivational strategies, using different approaches of orientation and taking advantage of the strength of the workers to achieve results.
According to her, the new road amp became necessary because she met a wok force of low morale and defeatist attitude to work. “First assignment was to motivate and re-orientate the workers. In fact, there are four museums in one in Jos. I had to give the staff a new orientation because our size must be o strength. The Jos Museum must move up and I told the staff I will put square peg in square hole, though I was deployed from the Institute of Museum and Archeological Studies, Jos. That was the first major step followed by the restructuring. She noted that after the international museum day celebration on May 18, she saw a new zeal and dedication among the workers, adding that to say she has committed followers, is to say the least.
She described museum as a product of tourism and destination, which must be kept alive.
This year’s museum day in Jos was celebrated with a difference. The event featured six local government councils in the senatorial zones presenting their traditional cuisines, dance drama, fashion show, poetry and football match. The event was designed to showcase the intangible heritage of the councils as well as other councils outside Jos.
To further attract tourists to the museum, the Coronation Hill, which lies within the museum premises is being considered for development by the museum authority in Jos. Atop the plateau is a flat landscape capable of accommodating the structures. But there is a rugged foot path leading to the hill top that requires improvement for convenient walk.
“We are reviving it for tourism destination. Each nationality in the state can erect a structure reflecting their identity. For instance, the Bassa people in Jos East are very interested. The hill, which provides an aerial view of Jos, will when developed, serves as recreation facility as well as geographical and environmental centre for learning,” she said.


In Umuahia, it’s children feast
By Ozolua Uhakheme
Assistant Editor (Arts)

‘Our great love for our future leaders cannot be quantified in material terms. We owe them every responsibility to bring them up in the fear of God and provide quality leadership, training and education to them for the actualization of their hidden roles of fatherhood, rulership and role modeling.’ This was the position of Director, Research and Education, National Gallery of Art, Dr. Kweku Tandoh while speaking at this year’s children day celebration organized by the National Gallery of Art, Umuahia, Abia State.
Dr. Tandoh stated that NGA in its mandate to fish out talents in visual art discovered in the children, great potentials, which in all proms and caprices are jewels in the hands of a prosperous nation. It is in this regard, he said, NGA designed the children day activities to provide platform for the actualization of their talents, as well as access to instructors who would expose the children to information and learning instructions capable of harnessing their innate abilities.
This year’s event was held by NGA in collaboration with the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Pacesetter FM 103.5 with supports from numerous sponsors like Hoeffers Restauant and Fast Food, ABC Transport Abia Line Transport, Seven Up Bottling Company, Eastern Comfort Hotel.

Fostering peace on the Plateau

Last year November, the hitherto peaceful hilly state of Plateau suffered avoidable human and material losses following some skirmishes in some parts of the state. Today, the National Artistes Platform Initiative is using art fiesta to reinforce those values that bind the people once noted for peace and hospitality, reports Assistant Editor (Arts), OZOLUA UHAKHEME.

After a series of seemingly senseless carnage on the Plateau, the traditional trade mark of the people; (peace and tourism), is fast regaining its lost values. And to foster a smooth return of culture of hospitality and peace to Plateau state, the National Artistes Platform Initiative, an NGO, is using the rich but diverse cultural heritage of the people as a veritable avenue. Tagged Plateau State Cultural Expo 2009, the event is being organized by the NGO following the need to rebuild pillars of reunion amongst the people through cultural exposition that features art exhibition, dance performances and lecture from the 17 local government areas in the state. It is also organised as part of the efforts to energise the on-going government’s revitilisation of the cultural sector by re-enforcing the strategies in the preservation of Plateaus state heritage.
The chairman of the central organising committee of the expo, Mr. Yusuph Dilas, said the event became necessary at a time like this to tell the world that Plateau state is determined to keep their culture of peace and hospitality despite the recent crises. He noted that the expo would also serve as a platform to showcase the culture of Plateau to the world while using the platform to bring everybody together once again as a peace loving people.
“Apart from the exhibition and dance performance, the event will feature a lecture to be delivered by one of the state governors who will talk on the theme; Culture and the challenges of social integration an development. The lecture will focus on restoring peace in the state and the nation because we cannot afford to change our identity from being a home of peace an hospitality,” he explained in an interview with The Nation in Jos. The three day event, which is being supported by MTN, FCMB, Nigerian Breweries Plc, NTA Jos, Glo, Fidelity bank, Zenith Bank and Finbank among others will open on September 11 till 13, at the Jos Township Stadium and the Plateau Hotel Rock Garden, Jos. Dilas disclosed that the organizers of the expo have one hundred percent support and cooperation from the state government adding that the commissioner for tourism, culture and environment, Barrister Joel Gwatau is interested an supportive of the event.

‘I sign the totality of my person on my paintings’

Three years after his last solo at the Nimbus Arts Centre, Ikoyi, Lagos, Duke Asidere, one of Nigeria’s modern artists will on June 23 present his recent paintings, drawings and water colours at Thought Pyramid, Abuja to the growing Abuja art market. Assistant Editor (Arts), OZOLUA UHAKHEME was in his studio.


Encountering Duke Asidere is always a refreshing exercise for every social commentator. He is not just a painter ‘imprisoned’ by his studio activities. From talking art to politics, philosophy, career development, environmental degradation and Niger-Delta crises, he is always at home. A recent meeting with the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria trained fine artist at his studio in Egbeda on the outskirt of Lagos, revealed the many elements that inform the near deviant approach to art, the theme of his art, his studio life and why he is obsessed to information in the newspapers as against the electronic media.
His moderately furnished apartment that also doubles as studio is a true reflection of his person- restless, media freak, especially newspapers, and a man with high taste for aesthetics. And all the furniture, electronics and fittings are in their right places. But for his paintings, no place is a ‘no go area’ not even his bedroom.
To him, painting each day is a normal exercise. And he is not dispose to keeping the palette wet primarily because of an impending exhibition. “I simply work not to prepare for an exhibition. So, everything I do affects my mentality and the paintings. In fact, all the emotions I feel about the nation find expression in my paintings. Anything that comes to my mind, I do. That is how I do my art. And that aspect of painting for buyers is a different issue,” he said, noting that his art is an embodiment of his total personality.
But can one separates Asidere from his paintings? Asidere who taught at the Auchi Polytechnic, between 1990 and 1995 explained that he never signs his signature on his paintings just as signature. “I sign my person and the totality of me and not just a signature on the works,” Asidere added. Despite the relative hunger among many artists, Asidere abhors commercialization of art and the artists. He says when an artist commercialises everything about himself, he stands to loose the potency of his woks. “For any artist, the day he stops searching, it is all over,” argued.
Expectedly, the interview shifted towards national issue. Hear him: “After examining the totality of our existence as a nation, I found that our leaders are the real militants. All the looters of our treasuries have never been punished. And we will not get a better Nigeria until there is bloodshed.”
Any discerning collector will certainly find works in Asidere’s studio and apartment a rich portfolio for collection. As at time of writing, he has a large collection of paintings that can conveniently serve three separate exhibitions. Yet, he is not in a hurry to show because often time, collectors come calling for them. “My drawings especially get picked up easily by clients and they pay my bills, he hinted on the marketability of his drawings on paper.
For the forthcoming solo exhibition in Abuja, he will be featuring works dating back to 16 years, which are more on women, housing and events. Specifically, he is presenting 20 paintings at the Abuja show. They are mainly oil on canvas, board, water colour, and drawings he did after the dream and queen series.
To followers of Asidere these past years, the evolution of his paintings has witnessed a great deal of experimentations, yet, he emerged distinct in content and form. In fact, from his mini sketches to drawings and paintings you constantly find those peculiar traits of his running through all. Though has explored themes like dream, queens and environment, he displays some high level of mastery of the medium, especially oil.
He has over the years broken the rules and patterns many green horns will hold as sacrosanct. The colour scheme and stylized forms are among the strong points of his works. Yet, the message of the works is never lost because like a draughtsman, he arranges all the elements in harmony and compelling format for the eyes.
But one can still discover in him some passion for experimentation. For the Abuja show, he has among others two paintings on board, which are semi-abstract. Asked why abstract on board? He simply says: “I want to feel free to splash the oil and walk round the piece while painting, and yet make impact.”

Nnenna Okore: A sweet home-coming

By Ozolua Uhakheme
Assistant Editor (Arts)

After about a decade of absence, New York-based Nigerian artist, Nnenna Okore will return to the Nigerian exhibition circuit this Saturday at the Goethe Institut, Victoria Island, Lagos. She will present Of Earth…Bark and Topography, a solo art exhibition featuring recent images and sculptures made from discarded and found objects that explore the abstract, while finding answer rather in style than in words or simplified messages. The sculptural pieces for the show broadly reference structures associated with plant, life, and environmental relief. Nnenna’s works explore how natural processes such as erosion and deformation regenerate into more stunning forms.
Expectedly, her former art teacher at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and Professor of Sculpture, El Anatsui, who curated her last show New Energies in 2001 in Lagos before leaving for the US, is special guest of honour at the opening. Of Earth…Bark and Topography will un till July 10.
Nnenna art is inspired by the use of discarded and found objects in Nsukka and the environs. Her work, by virtue of these influences, celebrates the transformation of discarded materials into cultural objects, forms, and spaces and brings a critical focus to bear on the consumption and recycling cultures in parts of Nigeria. Her materials include newspapers, wax, cloth, rope, clay and sticks and she applies various repetitive and labor-intensive techniques, like weaving, twisting, sewing, dyeing, waxing and rolling, which were learned by watching villagers perform everyday tasks. These processes accentuate colors, textures and other visceral qualities of her sculptures. But is Nnenna offering something special for her Nigerian audience?
Nnenna who bagged a BA degree (first class) in painting from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 1999, is an Assistant Professor of art, North Park University. She also bagged MA and MFA degrees in sculpture from University of Iowa in 2004 and 2005. Currently, her work is on display at Sakshi Gallery, India, and her second solo will open at Chicago Cultural Centre in July. She will also exhibit in a year-long exhibition titled Trash Menagerie, curated by Janey Winchell at the Peabody Essex Museum, in Salem Massachusetts and runs from June 20, 2009 till June 2010.
Unlike her past outings, this weekend exhibition at the Goethe Institut means much to the artist as well as her admirers or fans. First, it is her first solo show back home since she left for further studies in the US in 2001. Also, the show is likely to provide opportunity for her admirers to have a direct feel of her new menus and get updated on her creative journey these past years. It would be recalled that her participation in the much touted Bonhams auction: Africa Now; African Contemporary Arts, attracted a mixed grill of media reports in Nigeria. She exhibited Ashoebi II, a 2008 piece measuring 122X229 cm, which was the cover of the brochure and put at an estimate price of between 22,000 and 32,000 pounds.
For her, the show is a sweet home coming and an opportunity to reflect on how the local art scene has fared since she left the country.
Despite all these, Nnenna will not in anyway be under pressure because she has a loaded portfolio that can meet the demands of the Nigerian audience. Apart from found objects, she is at home with several media like clay, paper, video art, installation and photography. Since relocating to the US in 2001, she has continually kept her chisels busy and sharpened while pursuing her academic career. Since Metaphors, Alternative Space, Lagos in London in 2001, each year she held one solo show till last year with Reclamation, at Oriel Mostyn Gallery, Wales and Ulukububa- Infinite Flow at October Gallery, London. Last year alone, she was in Jo’Borg, South Africa for the Jo’Borg Art Fair apart from participating in seven other group shows in New York, Illinois, London and Wales. Interestingly, she did not snub arts events on the continent, as she featured in the Dak’art biennale Senegal, in 2006. In fact, the latest show in the Oriel Mostyn Gallery's temporary Oriel 6&7 space features sculptural assemblages by Nnenna. That Nnena is an emerging star and one of the most celebrated African artists in Diaspora is to say the least. Top leading newspapers in UK and America have acknowledged this by devoting good spaces for her reviews. Little wonder Bonham auction house’s choice of her work as cover of the auction’s brochure threw up some hot debate among critics and fellow female artists in the country.
It is not unlikely that Nnenna’s kind of art find some comfort with the direction Prof. El Anatsui charted in Nsukka, which has continued to attract more disciples. Like Anatsui, Nnenna finds found objects and waste items very useful and precious. While her raw materials might be throwaway - newspapers, mud, sticks, old rags and rope - Nnenna weaves these banalities together with such intricate care that the end products appear like some kind of ritualised artefacts.
Nnenna’s art is tilted towards recycling waste to wealth. Some critics describe her works as ‘always organic in composition, her constructions have some of the ergonomic architectural integrity of birds' nests, spiders' webs or termite mounds. As a formative influence she mentions the yam barns and thatched shrines of Nsukka in South-Eastern Nigeria and the local markets where "the recycled cardboard boxes, newspapers and cement paper bags that served as insulation, bed padding, gift-wraps, mats, table covering and food wrappings were alluring to behold.’
She says of her inspiration: “Much of my inspiration stems from my childhood years at Nsukka, a small university town in South-Eastern Nigeria. As a child, I was fascinated by the social, natural, and man-made conditions in rural dwellings around the University campus. Embedded within its landscape were evocative imageries captured within its rocky slopes, and architectural structures. I came across several stunning traditional art and architectural forms, such as, roofed shrines characterized by huge mounds of sand under a thatched structure, and yam barns and fences that traced the borders of people’s compounds. I was also drawn to simple sights of bare-footed children appropriating toys and hunting tools from scrap objects.
Other compelling views that appealed to my sensibilities were the carefully arranged wares borne on the heads of street peddlers, and household items in the market place lined up on the termite eaten tables and pews, plant tubers assembled in huge piles as well as sacks of grain stacked six to eight feet high and four to ten feet wide. Of course, the recycled cardboard boxes, newspapers and cement paper bags that served as insulation, bed padding, gift-wraps, mats, table coverings, and food wrappings within the market environment, were alluring to behold.”
Continuing, she added: “Of all the aspects of rural life that inspired me, the use of discarded objects and found materials in coping with poor economic conditions, had the most profound impact on me. It is reflected in the visual content and imagery of my works, which by virtue of these influences, celebrate the transformation of discarded materials into cultural objects, forms, and spaces, and bring a critical focus to bear on the consumption and recycling cultures in parts of Nigeria. My materials include newspapers, wax, cloth, rope, clay and sticks and I apply various repetitive and labor-intensive techniques, like weaving, twisting, sewing, dyeing, waxing and rolling, which were learned by watching villagers perform everyday tasks. These processes accentuate colors, textures and other visceral qualities of my sculptures.
Currently, I am invested in forms that explore, or are inspired by intimate spaces, shelters, architectural and natural environments, and ideas related to textures, colors, qualities and social values associated with African fabrics, using multiples and repetitive processes.

US researcher at OYASAF for ONA
By Ozolua Uhakheme
Assistant Editor (Arts)

A US arts historian, Janine Sytsma from the University of Wisconsin, has commenced a ten-week arts graduate residency programme at the Omooba Yemisi Adedoyin Shyllon Art Foundation (OYASAF), Lagos, becoming the second foreign researcher so far on the foundation’s residency after Ian Bourdland. Sytsma’s research at the foundation will focus on the contemporary Nigerian art with emphasis on the ONA movement.
Speaking at an interactive session with Art writers at the foundation’s headquarters in Lagos, Sytsma said she got interested in contemporary Nigerian because of her friendship with Nigerian artists like Moyo Okediji and Moyo Ogundipe, who are presently in the US.
“I have lots of Nigerians as friends in the US while I was in school. I have also seen some works on ONA, but not as much as OYASAF has in its collection. So, coming to Lagos will offer me lots of access to other artists’ works on ONA,” she added.
Sytsma who studied at the University of Denver worked at the University of Colorado for eight years before enrolling for her PhD in Art History at the University of Wisconsin.
She explained that taking up residency at OYASAF would provide her ample access to a rich private collection that is vital to her research. She described OYASAF documentation and collection as very rich and impressive noting that she would gladly want to return for another residency as a Fulbright scholar in the nearest future.
Founder of OYASAF, Engineer Yemisi Shyllon disclosed that the foundation has since its inception in 2007 continued to undertake series of working relationship with renowned art institutions and museums across Europe and America with the aim of promoting Nigerian arts and artists. According to him, another researcher from Munich, Germany would soon be at the foundation for residency programme in Nigerian art.
The foundation’s consultant curator Dr. Ohioma Pogoson said the foundation is working on a book on one of Nigeria’s renowned sculptor, Professor Lamidi Fakeye, a 360 page publication that would be well illustrated with colour and black and white pictures would be presented to the public in August. The book, he said, would be in hard and soft (e-format) for on-line readers. Mr. David Dale is the next artist the foundation will document after Fakeye.


Echoes from plundered Benin treasures
By Ozolua Uhakheme
Assistant Editor (Arts)


Twelve years after the commemoration of the historic British punitive expedition in Benin Kingdom, arts events across the globe continued to question a number of vexed issues while repositioning the clarion calls for restitution among others. One of such events is the forthcoming solo art exhibition, 1897.com by Dr. Peju Layiwola, a versatile artist and art scholar. She will be showing some of her recent works on the continuous pillage of artifacts from Africa and focusing on European imperialism in Africa, particularly Benin in the 19th century. The exhibition will feature five metal works and three installation works made from calabash, bronze, copper and polyester. 1897. com will be accompanied by a conference on restitution and supported by the Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC). It will preview at the Museum of the Institute of African Studies, Ibadan in October and thereafter, in Lagos in November.
In 2003, Layiwola and her mother, Princess Elizabeth Olowu, known for their feat in the art of bronze casting, made a grand presentation of their works in an exhibition titled Of Bronzes and Prints; A Mother/Daughter Perspective, at the Goethe Institut, Lagos. She explained that 1897.com would project art as a means of recalling history in a way that is fresh and creative. The time has come for questioning a number of issues and to re-contextualize and reposition the discourse. Layiwola, who is Yoruba by origin, is a grand-daughter of HRH Oba Akenzua II of Benin (1933-1978). When asked if her biological link is responsible for the slant of this project she replies. “Naturally, one is drawn to Benin because I was born and raised there. Being Yoruba and Benin at the same time, reinforces the historical link between the two cultures. In terms of the theme of the project, one cannot but be concerned as a Nigerian about the historical injustices of the past and the continued cultural rape by western powers on Africa. 1897 is a historical marker for Benin and Nigeria as a whole,” she said.
The British tactically brought Benin under it control as a protectorate in a treaty signed by the Oba in 1892 to ensure free trade to the British and to restrict the sovereignty of the Oba. British monopoly over trade had been continually threatened by the Oba. An emissary set out to see the King of Benin to persuade him to keep to the terms of the agreement. This visit was intended to be a ‘peaceful one’ comprising nine Britons two hundred and fifty African carriers carrying boxes containing weapons! The Oba had explicitly sent messages that he was not able to receive any visitors at the time. All this fell on deaf ears. The party marched on to Benin and was ambushed by the king’s men. The British attacked Benin, set the palace ablaze, and desecrated the shrines while thousand works of art were plundered. The Oba was then exiled to Calabar and senior chiefs hanged. The loot on getting to England was then auctioned. Benin art works have been attracting huge prices in the international market. The profits of which are all lost on Nigeria.
1897.com refers to an internet domain name which means commercial. The whole concept of 1897 was based on economic interest. It was economic tussle that made the British overrun Benin in 1897. It is this same economic interest that continues to feed the interest of these foreign museums. When Europeans view Benin objects in their museums, they have no cultural connections to them. The exhibition also straddles time and combines both tradition modes with the contemporary
1897.com which is also the title of one of the several installations is a visual representation of the photographic records of the pillage showing the British soldiers sitting in the midst of their loot. These pictures, in British records are a constant reminder of the shameful acquisition and have become images that come to mind in the 21st century reading of these works. Layiwola’s monumental installation comprising about 1,000 terracotta heads and plaques reawakens the debate on colonial imperialism beginning in 1884-85, the period of the Berlin conference when Africa was divided on a map between European colonies. Her choice of terracotta is for its durable nature and for the fact that it is readily available Terracotta also as a reference to the enduring traditions of Nigeria in clay beginning with the Nok tradition of 500 BC and recalls the recent debate on terracotta on the red alert list of ICOM now showing at the Musée Barbier-Mueller, Geneva which has received widespread condemnation about the legality of its acquisitions of African terra cotta.
The clamour for the return of Benin works have been on. In the 1940s, the Federal Government had to buy back some of the Benin pieces to build up the collection of the newly founded National Museum in Benin. In 1977, the Nigerian government asked the British Museum for the pectoral mask depicting Queen Idia, found in the bed chamber of the king, and chosen as the mascot for the Second World Black Festival of Arts and Culture to be loaned for the event. This request was turned down on the excuse that it was too fragile to travel. Subsequently, in 2000, Prince Edun Akenzua appeared before the British House of Commons requesting for repatriation of the works. In 2008, in anticipation of the Benin works coming to the exhibit in Chicago, a huge protest by the Nigerian community was staged. The Oba of Benin, writing in the exhibition catalogue urged the government of Austria to show humanness and magnanimity and return to us some of these objects which found their way to your country. Recently, Prince Edun Akenzua wrote the Director of the Art Institute of Chicago. Up till now, no response has come from the institution. Professor Babawale, the director of CBAAC declared recently that a letter written to the director of the British Museum did not receive the kind of attention sought after. Yet the works continue to adorn foreign museums. Some of these correspondences will form part of the extensive exhibition brochure and essays contributed for her exhibition curated by Sola Olorunyomi.
Layiwola has been working on this theme as far back as 2003. Along with the Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka and five other international scholars, involved with the Broken Memory Project, she gave the History Seminar at the University of Zurich, Switzerland and in the EHESS, Paris. This project provided the basis for further work on Benin and later became part of the traveling exhibition on Benin titled ‘Benin Kings and Rituals; Court Arts from Nigeria’. This exhibition which was shown in Vienna, Paris Berlin and Chicago was brought to a close with her lecture at the Art Institute of Chicago, USA in September 2008.
She combines studio practice, a strong commitment to research work and community service. Layiwola in doing her art also teaches through her visionary e-learning vcds in the arts. Her teaching career began in 1991 at the University of Benin. She rose to the headship of the Visual Arts unit of the University of Lagos and is presently on sabbatical leave with the Theatre Arts Department, University of Ibadan. She has conducted several Art workshops and exhibitions in Europe and America. It promises to be a show with profound depth in terms of its message and futuristic projections for artists, culture workers and the government.

I am not interested in presidency- Kanayo

At a time when its counterpart, Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN) is resolving its prolong leadership tussle, Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), is getting enmeshed in similar battle, reports Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME.

The board of trustees of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) has dissolved the Ejike Asiegbu led executive and appointed a caretaker committee to steer the association’s affairs for the next six months. The executive was dissolved at a meeting at the Ojez Restaurant at National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos last Friday following a resolution reached by the board at an extra-ordinary meeting held on the 15th of June 2009 at 35, Ogundana Street, Ikeja Lagos in response to executive’s failure to conduct election at the expiration of their tenure. Asiegbu’s executive came into power in June 2005.
In a 10-paragraph statement issued to the press at the meeting, the board resolved that a national care-taker committee is hereby constituted to run the affairs of the guild for six months tenure with option of renewal; that Mr. Kanayo O Kanayo be and is hereby appointed as the president of the committee of the care-taker committee of the guild while Mr. Bimbo Manuel be and is hereby appointed as the vice president of the care-taker committee of the guild.
The board also resolved that the committee must audit the accounts and properties of the guild and render a proper documentation of all registered members of the guild. “The new care-taker committee must as a matter of urgency take immediate possession of the properties of the guild. That these appointments take immediate effect even as the de facto president Ejike Asiegbu and his entire national administration is hereby dissolved for reasons which are obvious,” according to the board’s resolution.
The meeting that was attended by the BOT chairman, Ifeanyi Dike, his vice, Emmanuel Ogugua, Barrister Philip, Asiegbu’s vice-president (South-West), Hakeem Rahman, Clarion Chukwura, John Okafor, Charles Okafor, and chapter chairmen from Ekiti, Osun and Ogun States, among other actors acknowledged the position of the board on the fact that the tenure of Asiegbu as president of the guild has ‘expired and has failed, refused or neglected to conduct an election to usher in a new administration to lead our noble guild.’
In his remark, Dike said the board had to make this history and move the guild forward. But Kanayo who spoke passionately on his mission as care-taker president shortly after taking oath of office, said: “The exigency of the time calls for sober reflection. It is with all sense of humility to serve in the interim capacity. We place on record for finding us worthy. To us, the most fundamental agenda is strategy for stabilising the guild. We are poise to achieve. Actors constitute the fulcrum of Nollywood. I solicit your kind partnership and six months is just next door. I want you to get on board and help the guild.”
In response to arguments on the legality of the dissolution of the executive, Kanayo enjoined members to take the side of justice and truth while declaring that he has no intention to run as president of the AGN. “My task is to reposition AGN for next election. Fight no more and please run with me,” he assured everyone.
For Chukwura who was appointed on the care-taker committee along with Charles Okafor as spokesman, ‘today is a necessity, and don’t appreciate rancour in our rank. We are out to evolve a stable system. We need understanding and support to achieve the task to mid-wife an election for a new executive.’
But the legal adviser of the association, Barrister Philip described the development as unforeseen by the constitution arguing that the BOT is the custodian of AGN’s constitution. “The issue is not what the constitution says, but to acknowledge that the constitution does not back void. BOT weighed it against the gains,” he added.











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