Abuja and the Arts: A City on the Rise
Abuja Open House takes place on the last Thursday in October; every year, it happens between October 26–29 at 13 venues within the city. Its primary aim? To foster key relationships in the Nigerian art scene.
By Segun Ade-Martins
‘Eclecticism’ summarises Abuja Open House 2023: Catalytic Synthesis. A sample of the highlights of the fair include keynote talks the director of the Yemisi Shyllon Museum of Art, Dr. Jess Castellote; the artist, art educationist, and historian, Dr. Kunle Filani; and renowned artist and writer Victor Ehikhamenor, representing experience and international acclaim.
After a short break, a panel discussion to discuss the state of art writing and publishing. Esteemed guests included Sarah Hachi-Duchêne, an art book publisher; Jacqueline Suowari and Sor Sen, visual artists who have published their own books, Abdulkareem Baba-Aminu, writer, illustrator, publisher, and former editor at Daily Trust newspapers; Okechukwu Uwaezuoke, an art critic and editor of the THISDAY art pages.
The connections that were present in this panel became evident as their shared stories came to light. However, the discussion soon turned into debate as members of the audience, specifically gallery owner and international curator Dolly Kola-Balogun criticised the quality and availability of good art critique in Nigeria. “I subscribe to the Guardian [UK]” she says. Naturally you would expect the newspaper editors to defend their position. However, they expertly laid out the numerous challenges of publishing good art history and critique. “The journal owners, the audience, and the artists” is what this reporter took away as the axis of challenges in publishing good and consistent art documentation.
Hachi-Duchêne says “artists need to be less snobbish.” A resounding critique of what may be preventing the Abuja art scene from its full potential. However, she also declares, “Abuja is an art city-there is art everywhere,” with great relish. The minds of the individual panellists and certain audience members may most likely differ on the points they made. One thing that I can say that every person can agree on (with a high degree of confidence) is that generally, “art needs to be made more accessible to a wider audience.” The manner in achieving this may cause a variance in opinions, again. A discussion for another time.
Later that evening, there is also an injection of youth with two exhibition openings at unusual art spaces. At the Nordic hotel, Orlu Ozangeobuoma, Peter Eneji, Stanley Ugonabo, and Bakare Shariff had standout paintings and sculptures expressing bold and vibrant ideas. Their message is “Time in perspective.”
The next day, October 28, Yunus Emre Institute, the Turkish cultural centre, showed more youth but with a message of reconciliation and peace: “Harmony Unveiled: Negotiating Peace through Art.” Helen Nzete displayed her series “The Year of Knots,” multimedia relief paintings conveying the pain that a child grows into adulthood, with knots on ropes representing individual trauma moments. Also exhibiting were young artists Isaac Oluwatope, Ibukun Adeleye, and Awosola Michael Angello, curated by Roland Goyit.
In the middle of the day, was a talk by decorated photographers Aisha Augie and Tersoo Gundu, moderated by Theo Allanso at Windsor Art Gallery. They discussed the state of photography’s role in the wider visual art classification and guided eager audience members to understand art photography. “[Photography] is deeper than the story,” Augie says.
At Moeshen gallery, Sidney Osioh’s solo exhibition titled Queering Impossibilities: Man unbox your soul. It opened to much fanfare from the public with large paintings of well dressed figures with bird houses as heads.
October 29, the closing day, presented a talk and exhibition featuring Dr. John Owodemi, Akachukwu Chukwuemeka, and Ejiro Fenegal. Again, eclecticism is abundantly at play here. Owodemi’s Durbar paintings display untethered wealth and power, known as “Fadanci” in the Hausa language. Akachukwu’s dye paintings depict seminal moments in African literature. Rounding out this mix are the busts of women by Fenegal using bonded marble, contrasting youth and femininity in various guises.
After the dust settles at the Abuja Open House 2023: Catalytic Synthesis, everyone goes home to their respective lives. However, in various corners, participants plot how they will contribute to the art world. “My plan is to encourage young artists like myself to do more with their art,” Anne Ishaya, an attendee, says.
The thing about gathering artists and creatives for one event is that it galvanises the creative mind. It ‘catalyses’ their thoughts to produce art or to continue to build relationships. “I plan to write stories that are deeply inspired by my experiences and collaborate more with visual artists.” Kindness Olugbenga says, a writer and attendee.
There are three things Abuja Open House offers to Abuja, Nigeria, and the world: discovery, connections, and learning. “The event is not a panacea to all that ails the art scene”, Okechukwu Uwaezuoke, an art critic and editor of the THISDAY art pages had written in an earlier publication.
This is true; not all problems can be solved in four days. When art spaces can be discovered, awareness comes to the concerned public. After this, connections are there to be built upon, hence the 2022 edition’s theme: ‘Convergence’ and ‘Catalytic Synthesis’ is this year’s theme.
The theme is meant to build on the connections gained last year and create a lasting platform to develop cohesiveness in the Abuja art scene. This should allow Abuja to continue to attract national and international attention, not to compete with Lagos but to support it with variety and nuance in a serene environment. Step by step, Abuja Open House takes us closer to achieving this.
This gallery-hopping fair is not a magic bullet for putting this art scene on the global map, but it is a jumping-off point. The International Institute for Creative Development (often abbreviated as IICD) and its creative director, Nduwhite Ahanonu, are the architects of this fair. IICD’s motto states, “Where people who know something get to meet people who know something else,” again driving home the intention of the fair. With the wealth of experience in attendance, sharing contacts, and gaining knowledge, the fair, in its third edition, is leading Abuja on a path to becoming another key cultural centre in Nigeria.
A version of this article appears in THISDAY Newspapers
Originally published at http://thestrangejournal.wordpress.com on November 13, 2023.
