Nigerian Modernism - 4,
at Tate Modern.
This is the fourth post on this exhibition. As usual I am including the introduction which also appeared in the other three posts.
Nigerian modernism was not a single movement, but a variety of responses to the country's shifting cultural and political identity. Nigeria was established as a British colony in 1914. By this time, prosperous African kingdoms and societies had been profoundly altered by decades of military campaigns and colonial exploitation. Under British rule, artists continued to find innovative ways to express their ideas, histories and imaginations. They embraced and rebelled against the colonial education system. Some created their own art societies and curriculums, while others travelled abroad in search of professional opportunities.
Throughout Nigeria, artists were influenced by Pan-Africanism and European art forms. They also drew inspiration from local cultures. Artistic and religious traditions from the region's many ethnic groups - including Fulani-Hausa, Igno and Yoruba peopoe - met Christian and Islamic practices.
In 1960 Nigeria gained independence from Britain. New artistic and literary clubs were founded across the country, providing spaces to explore the intersections of art, poetry and performance. During this time Nigeria experienced an economic boom, but it also faced a devastating civil war. In the aftermath, artists established new visual languages in their search for a new postcolonial identity.
Obiora Udechukwu, Musician, 1975-76, (oil on board)
A bold yellow spiral unravels across the canvas symbolising the sacred python, a divine guide in Igbo cosmology. To create layered designs, Udechukwu used sgraffito, a technique in which a sharp implement is pulled through wet acrylic paint. Shadowy figures embedded in the yellow band evoke wartime displacement and national crisis. Udechukwu references the Nigerian Civil War and perhaps the political unrest which followed Nigeria's 1993 election.
El Anatsui, Solemn Crowds at Dawn, 1965, (tropical hardwoods, tempera and house paint)
El Anatsui, Leopard's Paw-Prints and Other Stories, 1991, (tropical hardwood)
El Anatsui, Earth-Moon Connexions, 1993, (wood, paint)
El Anatsui incised Uli, Nsibidi and other indigenous graphic languages into the surfaces of his wooden sculptures.
Tayo Adenaike, Alhaji Takes the Floor, 1980, (pen, ink and watercolour on paper)
Adebisi Fabunmi, Masquerade, 1965, (lino print on cloth)
Using chisels, a chain saw and fire, he cut and burnt designs into the wood's surface. For Anatsui, the chainsaw is a metaphor for the violence of slavery. his works explore the destruction and reconstitution of African cultures before and after colonialism.
No comments:
Post a Comment