Stamps and Engravings:

I began my art in an unconscious way by engraving on wood thorn, a type of wood found in our forests. I did not know then that papers I stamped with the engraved images I made constituted art. In time, I was steered naturally towards printmaking to which I was introduced to in the art school, but became a major line of pursuit after attending the series of workshops organised in the 60s and 70s by Prof. Ulli Beier at Ibadan, Oshogbo and Ife, south west Nigeria. In all three workshops, I was under Prof. Ru Van Russem of Tilburg University Holland. My interest in printmaking was further kindled when I attended the Haystack Mountain School of Art and Crafts in Maine, U.S.A, in 1975, where I worked both as student and as an instructor.

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Ahwaire and the DogEketeke and Erevbuye

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After my early fascination with water colour paintings of nature - landscapes, sunset scenes and flowers, I became interested in using black and white block print medium to draw from Urhobo world view as encoded in folklore, particularly the folktales. I later extended my interest to other parts of the country using colour prints and paintings. I drew inspirations from the novels of Amos Tutuola, who made epics out of Yoruba folktales which are very similar to those of the Edo group, to which Urhobo language belongs.

Early Themes: Folklores, Folktales and Myths.

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Ahwaire and Udene (Tortoise and the Lizard)

Lunar Myths IIGala Day under the River

FlowersLunar Myths I – Copper foil

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Printmaking ExperimentsThese Printmaking workshops in Nigeria and in the United States of America helped me discover my true interest in art. I became so enarmoured with printmaking that I abandoned for a long period painting for which I specialised in the art school. Printmaking like science, lends itself to experimentation. I took advantage of its dynamics to engage in different experiments to manipulate the same motif or idea and produce different design effects. Tiny engravings have been developed and transformed into low relief sculptures and in some cases, enlarged into high reliefs or paintings. In reverse, pieces which were finished as large pictures or prints have been re-examined in miniature gravures. These experiments have led to many innovations which included plastographs – prints from engraved polyester material, additive plastograph, which is an inverse etching technique and plastocast, which is a low relief sculpture that I called neo classical plaques because of their resemblance and similarity to Benin ancient bronzes.

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Emeranvwe Phru Go-o (Hail New Moon) I

Emeranvwe Phru Go-o (Hail New Moon) III

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New Masks

The period from mid 1960s to about 1980 was devoted to Christian religious art. I call this body of works which is devoted to the life of Jesus Christ, New masks. The works attempt to show the universality of the Christian message by domesticating the symbols of Christianity. The series became very controversial, drawing comments from both the laity and priesthood.

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The last supper and stations of the cross

Resurrection St Paul

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Environmental ConcernsLooking back about six decades, my art practice has undergone several periods. Two of these expressed concern about the environment. The first was called the “Sahelian Masquerades” which showed concern for the negative effect of the encroachment of the Sahara Desert in the northern part of Nigeria on plants, animals, and human beings. The other period titled, “Totems of the Delta”, reflected on changes, natural or man-made, that have created adverse effects on lives of the people in the Niger Delta region of our country. A way by which the people vent their anger over the environmental degradation is when women dance in the nude to protest the devastating effects of oil exploration and extraction. A fallout of protests in the region led to the execution of the Ogoni Nine among which Ken Saro Wiwa was prominent.

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Plant two trees where one is been cut Nudes and Protest

Protesting YouthsRape of the Land

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Alphabets and Ideograms

I invented the Ibiebe (Urhobo word for letters or alphabets) to help form words and to create signs for concepts and ideas which reflected Urhobo world view. And as part of my contribution to the synthesis theory developed by the Zaria Art Society of the late 50s, the ibiebe are attempt to revive timeless Nigerian values that were being eroded by colonization. The characters which are both graphic and sculptural are inspired by many sources which include Ubi or Uli which are marks or paintings on the body or other surfaces like the walls of buildings.

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Ibiebe ABC

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Ibiebe Aro Ogwa(Signs at the Front of a Hall) II

Installations

An important phase of my art is the assemblage of objects

which when viewed together express an idea. It was

inspired by the traditional religious shrines of the Niger

Delta region of Nigeria. Each of the objects radiate energy

which combine and create magical effect. Artists in Africa

and elsewhere have borrowed ideas from these shrines to

create the art forms now called installations. Personally,

the busy nature of my compositions may have been the

result of long association with these shrines in Edo and

Urhobo cultures.

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Scavenging in alost Paradise

Igbe Idjubili (Jubilee Dance)

Aro Oghwere (Farmer’s alter)

Triumph

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Beauty and the machine

This childhood experience in which I was fascinated by the

open engine of a clock did not leave me. It probably explains my obsession for the use of computer mother boards and other engine parts to create a series of art works. Some of the most interesting art works which I have encountered so far were even not created as artworks. They are designs meant to solve scientific problems. Because nearly all engines are encased, I break the discarded ones open to find and extract the pieces which I combine to give me interesting pictures.

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Serrated Dome No. 1

Contemplating the modern city

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The Harmattan Workshop Series-opportunities and continued learning

The workshop series organised by Uli Beier in the 60s and early

seventies helped me to discover my true interest in the visual arts. This

gave the idea to set up the Harmattan workshop series which is an

informal art training setup to give learning opportunities to beginners as

well as create forum for professionals to grow further by the acquisition

of new skills and exchange of ideas. I must say that my interactions at

The Harmattan workshops is perhaps one of the reasons why I have

continuous ideas to create, a process which allows me to always

remain contemporary rather than a temporary artist. The Harmattan

workshop now in its sixteenth year has become a brand, that now

attracts international attention by her continued production of star

artists. It is hoped that Agbarha–Otor where this workshop is situated

will become a world heritage site like has been accorded Oshogbo.

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Harmattan Workshop front view of the Niger Delta Arts and Cultural Centre (NDACC) Agbarha-Oto, Lagos , Nigeria

The pageant

Wooden Sculptures by Andrew Onobrakpeya and Anyandepo Ayanladun

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Books and Documentation

In signing off this short presentation I realise that artworks should speak for themselves, or at best, as both Simon Ottenburg and Dele Jegede have urged me to do, leave others to write and talk about my works. I appreciate their point but unfortunately I went ahead not only to talk, but sometimes to write and publish my pieces and working notes in mimeographs, monographs and portfolios. These I think should be treated as documentation and research materials which can become useful in the hands of historians and critics. The reason I create art works is sometimes to write about them. A book or portfolio become art work in its own right. The collection shown below are some writings that I have put together in form of books. I hope they will help to fill in the gap of the periods and ideas that I missed out in this Presentation.

Thank you.

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Ibiebe Alphabets and Ideograms

Sahelian Masquerades

The Spirit in Ascent

Jewels of Nomadic Images

Masks of the Flaming Arrows

Serigraphs of the Sunshine Period

Symbols of Ancestral Groves

Portfolio of Art and Literature

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