Joe Musa is the Director-General, (DG), of the National Gallery of Art, (NGA). Musa, a professional artist and graduate of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), who has won several awards from his art works within and outside the country, took the headship of the NGA, a parastatal under the Federal Ministry of Tourism and Culture in 2006.

Musa is of the belief that the government can generate over N10b from the art sector. He also says in this interview with Michael Jegede in his Abuja office prior to the exhibition of his recent art works at the studio of the Italian Embassy, the NGA boss that the agency is leaving no stone unturned in advancing the art sector. Excerpts:

How did you feel upon your appointment as the Director-General of the National Gallery of Art (NGA)?

Like any normal human being, I felt awed. It was like disbelief. It was like I was surprised. I never knew that all my various contributions were being noticed and recognised. I actually thought they were not. I have organised sundry seminars and workshops on my own. I run an art gallery called Joe Musa Gallery. When I left Channels Television, I was running my independent programme that was syndicated in about 13 stations. First, I was a freelance contributor to THISDAY and a couple of other print media. It was when I realised that people were not really reading the visual art pages that I decided to turn it to television programme, and by that it was easier for me to market the visual art. I was doing that while I was also running my art gallery. In the course of doing that I was also doing my usual art advocacy programmes. Joe Musa Gallery had, as at that time taken about 30 artists on residency programmes to the United State of America (U.S.A.). We linked them with galleries over there. So, we have a lot of Nigerian artists being represented in the U.S.A. And that tended to open the shores and attention for the Nigerian visual art. So, I have been involved in a lot of cultural or visual art advocacy programmes. When I was now called to man this sector, I felt thrilled because it means that a lot of responsibility is expected of me. And I made up my mind that I would not disappoint my colleagues. I will not disappoint those who have bestowed on me this honour. So, for two years now we have been doing a wonderful work. We have been reinventing the sector and we have been creating programmes to make sure that the sector becomes a major economic driver.

In specific terms, what would you say you have done to advance the sector since you assumed office?

Apart from some of the indices we have as structures on ground to measure our growth, we have also lifted the sector from that dormant and sleeping giant state to a very a vibrant and active state. I just came back from Sothebys where we looked at the indices. We discovered that in the last auction of Sothebys in the last quarter of last year it generated $6 billion, while Christys, which is the U.S. version, generated $5 billion. Now, the emerging market in Indian for the visual art last year generated $3 billion in the auction market. Then, internationally, we discovered from the data at our disposal that the world from the visual art last year generated about $41 billion. Nigeria also was involved in auctioning and in the last auction we made $200 million. It was in my coming that auction became a major business. We brought auctioning to the front burner. Auctioning is the secondary and tertiary market that will support what the artists are doing.

Are you tying to say that the visual art is a veritable source of revenue generation for a country?

The Federal Government of Nigeria has been echoing and propagating the alternative income generating sectors to supplement the oil sector. What we are doing in the visual art is to say that the visual art is not only a tourism destination and product, but it is also a sector that is economically vibrant. Auctions have been there but people really do not know that auction being the secondary market is what can really sustain the visual art. It has never been known. In the first auction that was done last year April, a work of Bruce Onabrakpeya sold for N9.2 million. Another work of a Nigerian professor, Yusuf Grillo, a retired dean from YABATECH, sold for N5.5 million. What we are trying to do, using the government apparatus, is to bring this vibrancy of the visual art to the forefront for people to see. A lot of collectors don't want to be known. They are silent because they don't want attention. But we are trying to make everybody understand that art collection is also tax deductible. So, all these are what we are working on. We are working on our laws. Then, we are also working with the tax people, the national planning and the office of statistics.

What exactly is the essence of your parley with these bodies you are mentioning?

Basically, our main essence of working with them is to see that we harness the potentials in the visual art for the benefit of the country. When we say visual art made certain amount for Nigeria, there will be a categorical evidence to show. So, all these are structures that have never been on ground. Even the laws to back up the auctioning, we are working on it right now with the National Assembly. And you know that the National Assembly is a conglomerate of great men of ideas who, no doubt, have a clear knowledge of the significance attached to the visual art. So, we are hundred percent sure that it will sail through. We are actually waiting for them. Apart from that, we said rather than waiting what are the things going on internationally that we have not been part of? We looked at art expo. Art expo is a major programme. We did not invent the art expo. We have Art Expo London, Art Expo Chicago, Art Expo Berlin, and Art Expo Japan. So, we went and spoke to them and got the franchise for Art Expo Nigeria. And, behold, Art Expo Nigeria began.

When did you begin the Art Expo Nigeria?

We started the Art Expo Nigeria in August last year. The art expo was wonderful and beautiful. It was well attended. We helped to pop up the Gallery Owners Association (GOA) so that they in turn will now start running the art expo and the National Gallery of Art (NGA) will now support them financially. So, we have set up the art expo. We have handed over the programme to them. So, instead of going to different galleries, all you need to do is to come to the art expo and you will find all the galleries represented. You will see different galleries. Then, international galleries will start applying for it. This year, so far, we have received at least about 20 enquires from international galleries that they want to participate. Of course, they will pay fees. They will bring their artists and Nigeria will benefit from it. We created our own programme called ARESUVA.

What is the meaning of ARESUVA?

ARESUVA simply means African Regional Summit and Exhibitions on Visual Art, and we started last year.

Is the ARESUVA wholly the brainchild of the National Gallery of Art?

Yes, it is in every respect, the brainchild of the National Gallery of Art. It was when I came that we mooted the idea as part of the re-engineering process of the visual art sector. We realised that we needed a programme that will bring us international attention. Everywhere, all over the world, there are what you call biannual and triennials. It is like a necessity in the visual art. But we don't have it in Africa. Though, we have the Dark Art in Dakar that is a biennial. We have Panafest in Ghana. They are not strictly a visual art thing. They are more of an art and culture programme. So, the National Gallery of Art now created what we call ARESUVA. ARESUVA is supposed to be a biennial. We did the first edition last year September and we are going to do it again this year in November. And subsequently it starts running as a biennial. We also intend to design the programme subsequently, to run, say for three months and definitely artists will rise to say that they want to be part of it. Programmes, for instance, will be going on say from September to December. So, for those three months there are art activities going on. There is buying and selling which is the basis of everything. Buying and selling generate income, not just for the artists but also for our nation and enhances the economy. That is what ARESUVA is all about. It is an Africa thing for the Africans. We initiated it to carve a niche for ourselves and create a market for ourselves in Africa, so that other parts of the world would know that we have a vibrant visual art.

How did you manage to bring together all the world prominent artists from within and outside the African continent?

Actually 33 countries were represented, 16 were officially invited but 33 were represented. We had about 60 artists from visiting African countries. What happened was that we invited artists through their embassies, but when we realised that bureaucratic bottleneck is impeding the expected rapid responses, we started writing directly through the foreign affairs ministry to them. Then, we noticed that this was not also forthcoming as we expected, but because I have taken part in various residency programmes all over the world and I know most of these African international artists, we started getting to them one on one. Those ones that the foreign ministry or their embassies contacted were the official ones. Other artists came on their own.

Lisa Benda came from New York, and other great artists in the diaspora and foreign African artists came on their own and were part of it. They did not come as official representatives of their respective countries.

Would you say that the first edition of the ARESUVA was a huge success?

For the first time, I will say it is a resounding success. And from everywhere, even Cameroon, I have received a number of calls from a couple of artists who want to be part of the next ARESUVA. Four artists came from Cameroon last year but this time they want to be about 20. They invited me for their National Festival of Arts and Culture because of what they saw in ARESUVA. We have received far over 100 e-mail enquiries on when the next ARESUVA will take place. We have made them to understand that it will take place on November 15-21, 2009.

What were the major challenges you encountered in the course of the first ARESUVA?

Honestly speaking, there were too many challenges. One of it was the bureaucratic bottleneck which I have mentioned. We invited a lot of countries. When we went to check, we discovered that the documents we sent to them for over three months were lying on the table of one man who never bothered to treat them. Funding is another major challenge. Then, we are not unmindful of the apathy within the system for this sector. It is there, but nobody will fight for you. The lawyers have fought for themselves, the sports people have fought for themselves. Today, the sports industry is celebrated. In fact, when you see your son begin to bounce football, you won't shout at him to "go and study your book." You will rather tell him "please play the ball and if you want more balls, let me know." The sports industry has even gone to the point of having a dedicated magazine. We don't have a dedicated magazine yet, but we have just created one at the National Gallery of Art. On my own while in the Joe Musa Gallery, I used to run Art Watch Africa magazine. That was the only dedicated magazine. Art Watch Africa is a magazine and a television programme at the same time. The ARESUVA challenges were legion, I mean too many. But all the same, it is a worthwhile experience. We saw in an exhibition hall here in Abuja over 200 astute professional artists exhibiting in different styles and mediums to the admiration of all the participants.

How much do you think the government can generate from the visual art sector on an annual basis?

Annually, it is possible for the visual art to generate for Nigeria a minimum of N10 billion, for a start. Beyond buying and selling of the paintings, the artist will pay his staff. That is the primary market. We also have the galleries that sell these works. The artists consign these works to the galleries; the galleries sell and give the artist his percentage and also pay their staff. The secondary and tertiary market is where the works are sent to auction houses and that is where the boom is. If you sell a work in your studio, you may sell it for N10 but when it gets to an auction house it may be sold for a N100 million.