Mcphilips Nwachukwu and Benjamin Njoku
5 June 2008
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Lagos — ARTISTS, art teachers, collectors, art gallery operators, curators, art journalists and other stakeholders for more than three hours last Friday engaged in a brainstorming session geared towards fashioning out ways of repackaging the visual art sub-sector of the national economy to conforming with the economic indicators of wealth creation.
The event, anchored around "Developing the Visual Art Sector: Prospects and Challenges (Perspectives from the various stakeholder)" was another of Arthouse's forum organized by the culture advocacy group, Committee for Relevant Art (CORA) in conjunction with the National Gallery of Art (NGA) and held at Aina Onabolu Hall building, National Arts Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos.
Chaired by Chief Frank Okonta, President, Art Galleries Owners Association (AGAN), the event, apart from parading those that matter as far as the visual art sub-sector is concerned, became a very interesting platform for art stakeholders to have a fore taste to the proposed regional art summit slated to hold later this year.
Chief Frank Okonta, President, Gallery Owners Association of Nigeria, and Mufu Onifade, Moderator of the event held at Aina Onabolu Hall building, National Theatre, Iganmu, last Friday
As a parastatal under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, which is saddled with the responsibility of promoting as well as regulating the practice of visual art in the country, NGA has deemed it necessary to reposition the visual art sector so as to attract both international and local patronage through its various programmes.
Before flagging off presentations by the panelists which included presidents of various professional groups, interest groups and the Director-General of NGA, the host heads comprising, Chief Joe Musa, Toyin Akinsoho and Jahman Anikulapo, both of CORA, had earlier intimated the gathering on the need to collate emerging presenta-tions from the discourse into a volume that would later be published and kept as a document to help in setting agenda for the sector in future.
Leading discussion at the occasion were Mallam Mua'zu M. Sani, Head of Painting, Fine Arts Department, Ahmad Bello University Zaria, who represented artists from the Northern part of the country, Kolade Oshinowo, President, Society of Nigerian Artists (SNA), Edosa Ogiugo, President Visual Arts Association, Dr. Bridget Nwanze, President, Female Artists Association of Nigeria, Helen Uhunmwangho, Secretary-General, Pan African Circle of Artists (PACA) and Levi Yakubu, President, Craft and Potter Association of Nigeria.
Others discussants included President, Visual Art Society of Nigeria (VASON), Chief Rasheed Gbadamosi, Co-ordinator, Arts Writers Association of Nigeria (AWON), Mr Segun Ajayi and Photographers Association of Nigeria, represented by Tam Fiofori.
While art historian and President of CAF, Dr. Kunle Filani, and Olu Ajayi, Chairman, Lagos State chapter of SNA, respectively spoke from the floor as observers, the moderator of the event, Mr. Mufu Onifade, made it clear that the event was intended to open up discourse as a way of addressing certain issues that militate against the growth of visual art sector in the country.
However, beyond the expectations of the gathering, every individual presenter at the occasion tried to examine or re-examined the direction of art in the unfolding decade and possibly proposed an agenda to existing formats as an action plan that will give cohesion to Nigerian art in the 21st century.
Issues raised while the discourse lasted bothered more on the inability of both private and public galleries to nurture and promote emerging artists and arts in the country, religion and stigimatization, the un-conducive work environment and the need to encourage a healthy relationship between the artists and the corporate world.
Mua'zu Sani, who made the first presenta-tion, narrated some of the challenges facing artists from the core northern part of the country. In his paper, titled, "Visual Art Practice: A Case Study of Core Northern Nigeria", he revealed that most of the art in public places in the north are either being destroyed or neglected.
Islam, Mua'zu noted, is not against the flourishing of art, as far as it has nothing to do with idolization. But a major problem remains that of misconception of the position of Islam on figural works which, according to him, is responsible for negative stigmatization, stressing that in the North, fewer Muslims are involved in art practice.
Mua'zu, therefore, called on the NGA to consider the idea of opening up more out-stations in the north, arguing that such moves will help in boosting the practice of art as well as creating jobs in the area.
Kolade Oshinowo, in his presentation, lamented the inability of government to create an enabling environment for the exploration and discovery of new talents, while Dr. Bridget Nwanze advocated the need for NGA to extend its operation to such states in the South-South geo-political zone as Baysela, Rivers and Delta.
Over the years, the art community has been very vocal in criticizing government and corporate Nigerians for not providing enabling environment and patronage for art practitioners to excel. According to Oshinowo, given the harsh economic condition of the country, Nigerian artists have remained undaunted in their struugle to remain relevant the global art terrain.
"Nigerian artists have continued to work despite the harsh realities of life in this part of the world. We live in a country where art is relegated to the background" he noted, adding that the challenges facing the artists go beyond that of marketing, to appreciation, mediocrity, administration and creation of enabling environment for artists to thrive.
He also proposed the revival of art competition and giving of awards to deserving artists as a means of boosting creativity in the country. He also called for the establishment of an artists village in all states of the federation, reasoning that the establishment of such centres will help to stimulate growth in the art in the country. "The artists village is a veritable way of preserving and promoting the art". He advised artists to be more committed to their professional calling, and avoid fractionalization which, according to him, does not do the profession any good."
Other speakers also made cases at the forum as they sought for recognition, patronage as well as opportunities for having access to the parastatal's facilities. After all presentations were made, Director-General of NGA, Chief Joe Musa, gave a run down of what the parastatal has been doing in the past two years that he assumed office.
According to him, while the NGA is poised to creating an enabling environment for the promotion of the visual art in Nigeria, the parastatal is all out to supporting any purposeful project brought before it by any of the recognized professional groups under the umbrella of the Society of Nigerian Artists.
Musa, however, revealed that as part of the efforts of his administration to reposition the visual art in the country, NGA has concluded plans with the owners of Art Expo in the United States to creating a Nigerian version of their epochal art festival.
"We have also created an art competition that will take up later this year to encourage the young ones to develop their talents. We are as well revisiting the documentation of artists and their works in Nigeria."
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