Category: Life – The Midweek Magazine

An art fair with the theme Tale of 1000miniatures will open on December 1 at 4th Floor Mega Plaza, 14 Idowu Martins Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The fair is organised by Ogirikan Art Gallery and Iwalewa Gallery of Art, two upcoming art galleries in Lagos that promote and encourage both young and established indigenous artists with bias for unrecognized artists with exceptional talents.

It will feature over 1000 paintings, drawings, photographs and sculptures as well as music, creative performance, free craft lesson for children, live painting, face painting and drum performance.

The maiden edition of the art fair is expected to feature 100 young and upcoming Nigerian artists. “We have a vision to bring together artists to showcase their talents for one day art fair which will take place on the first of December 1. Art has made a big comeback in Nigeria,” according to the organisers.

Iwalewa Gallery of Art was established in May 2016, while Ogirikan Art Gallery was established in 2018.

Preparations are in top gear as Words Rhymes & Rhythm Publishers Limited is set to host the fourth edition of its yearly literary festival Feast of words.

It is one of Nigeria’s most anticipated literary festivals, especially among the younger generation of writers. It is a unique, one-day, non-ticketed literary festival that features performances, discussion panels, award presentations, book readings, poetry, musical, and drama performances.

Founder, Words Rhymes & Rhythm (WRR), Mr. Samson Iruesiri Kukogho, said: “Over the years, the festival has become a much-anticipated opportunity for young writers from all over Nigeria to interact with each other face-to-face.”

Feast of world 2018 will hold on  December 1 in Ibadan, Oyo State.

‘The Theme is: ‘Telling our stories’ #feastofwords2018 and the venue is The International School, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Ibadan, Oyo State.

The one-day event will start from 10 am and end at 6 pm. It will have workshops (poetry and prose), panel discussion, book readings, performances (drama, music, poetry), book unveiling, library project activation and award presentations.

Kukogho said:  “Everyone who attends will get a free copy of the Brigitte Poirson Poetry competition.”

He explained that the Feast of Words is one of the many ways through which Words Rhymes & Rhythm Publishers Limited, promote Nigerian writing and support the development of young writers. He added that the festival presents an opportunity for interaction and networking among young writers all over the country. The 2015, 2016 and 2017 editions had in attendance writers and literary enthusiast from all over the country.

Kukogho  also called on all book lovers to donate used and new books “for our library project, which we plan to unveil on Saturday, December 1 as part of activities lined up for this year’s edition of the WRR Literary Festival – Feast of words.

“Our target is to donate 1000 books to students of our host institution – the International Secondary School Ibadan – in furtherance of our overall aim of promoting literary excellence in Nigeria, specificallyamong young writers,” he said.

Other ways the organisation gives back to the public include the followings YOUTHNGAGE:  In 2015, Words Rhymes & Rhythm launched the WRRYouthNGAGE initiative in recognition of the need to support young Nigerian writers of school age, towards the realisation of their full potentials.

Green Author Prize (GAP) was introduced in 2015 as a yearly award in recognition of the need to give upcoming writers a chance to get heard in a clime where the prohibitive cost of publishing has silenced many.

Four young writers of between 14 and 24, selected from four zones North, Southeast and West of Nigeria by a team of young and established Nigerian writers will be jointly published as co-authors of one book.

Nigeria Teachers Award: The WRR-Nigerian Teachers Award (WRR-NTA) is a yearly prize sponsored by Words Rhymes & Rhythm to recognise and reward Nigerian teachers for their contributions to the development of education and the literary industry.

Brigitte Poison Poetry Contest, BPPC: This is a monthly writing contest aimed at rewarding young poetry talents in Nigeria.  It was instituted in February 2015 in honour of Brigitte Poirson, a French poet and lecturer, editor, who has over the years promoted and supported African poetry.

Eriata Oribhabor Poetry Prize and Albert Jungers Poetry Prize are also part of the organisations initiatives.

A Nigerian art historian at the University of Texas in Austin, United States, Prof Moyo Okediji, reviews Tola Wewe’s forthcoming solo exhibition Apewo, opening at the Thought Pyramid Art Centre, Abuja, on December 8.

Somewhere in the far distance, the melodious dialogues of the talking drums serenade the landscape as the evening slowly descends in Ondo, a cosmopolitan hub in the center of southwest Nigeria. Adétolá Wewe, the Nigerian artist, sits exhausted on a couch inside the spacious studio of his sub-urban mansion after a long day of painting. A bottle of schnapps covered with a minuscule cup is the only item on the round handcrafted wooden table in front of him. Like a crown on his head, the stylish Afro hairdo is knotted and brazenly unruly, conveying abohemian disposition associated with his artistic practice of more than three decades dedicated to full time creative concentration. His greying beard gives him a handsome and distinguished demeanor in the company of three gentlemen and two women, one of whom is an Ifá minister, a Babaláwo of high esteem, who has traveled from the distant town of Ilá Oràngún to talk with him.

They have gathered at Wewe’s invitation to celebrate his completion of a large painting, for which he urges the Ifá minister to decipher a path and fathom a meaning. The Babaláwo throws the opele chain to consult Orúnmilà, the divinity of oracular vision. With its back propped against the wall, the painting sits about eight feet from the gathering of people. The minister,wearing a professional frown that has gouged deep furrows on his brow, fixes his gaze intently on the painting as he throws the opele chain on the circular face of an intricately carved Opon Ifá wooden tray. He throws the chain a couple of times, then looks up and shifts his gaze to Wewe, even as the furrows on his brow remain intense. “Ah, you have painted music itself. The reading looks joyous,” the minister announces. “This pattern conveys a benevolent message.”

Relaxed, Wewe smiles and asks, “What do you see?”.

The minister does not respond. He throws the opele a couple more times. His brows less anxiously furrowed, the minister leans back in his chair, looking more satisfied and convinced that what he is reading on the Ifá circumference is favorable. “Your painting is not just pregnant with music. It has given birth to percussion. This message calls for a celebration,” the minister concludes, releasing a deep sigh of relief and casting a glance of approval at the canvas. “Your painting is from the lineages of dígbè, a special cocktail or àmúlùodù that rarely appears, elegantly organised as a characteristic musical pattern on my Ifá divination tray here. It refers to a specific literary verse called Àpéwo. The original domain of the painting that you have just completed, therefore, is musicality.”

Puzzled, Wewe inquires, “Àpéwo? How is this so? What does it mean?” Apparently, the minister has thoroughly piqued Wewe’s interest. Everybody sits up to listen to the minister’swords. The tension in the room hangs so thick you could cut it with a knife. The silence deafens the air. Everyone waits for the Babaláwo to speak.

El à ború, El à boyè, El à biyèbí the minister greets the gathering in the liturgical language of Ifá priesthood. “Let me fully explain to you the meaning of dígbè. It is a twinned symbol. It refers to dígbè. When we carefully examine this pattern, it is called a hybrid image, also known as àyalù or àmúlùmolàodù. Only novices would actually break it into its two components of .dí and Ogbè. It is a delicately balanced composition of .dí on the right side,and Ogbè on the left. Let’s think of it in terms of architecture. Mortar is a mixture of lime, cement and water. We simply call it mortar because masons already know the components of this compound. Builders who don’t know the meaning of mortar cannot call themselves adept bricklayers. Those who have practiced Ifá for a long time, therefore, formally call this pattern.dígbè. They do not singularly pronounce each of the two symbolic components of this hybrid as’.dí’ and ‘Ogbè.’ In full, they would pronounce it as .dígbè, awolofin. It is the musicalcontraction of .dígbè that defines its vocal identity, just as in your painting. The relationship liesin the translation of sound to image.”

To demonstrate the specific configuration of .dígbè, he draws out this code on the cadmiumyellow wood powder, known as .ye??r.sùn, covering the entire surface of the circular wooden tray of Ifá, as the icon here: This ministerial interpretation of .dígbè, in other words, is akin to the manner in which artists regard green, orange or purple in terms of colors. As a secondary c To fully explicate the layers of meaning buried in the body of Wewe’s painting, therefore, the Ifá minister then proceeds to recite the poetry of Àpéwo that has come with the .dígbè signature, combining literature, music and body language into a series of ritualistic gestures reminiscent of performance art. But he is not actually performing: he has become a vessel of divine messaging, conveying encoded motifs of spiritual vibrations from above to the abode of mortal beings below. As the gathering of listeners seemingly holds their breaths, he recites the poetry of Àpéwo, elaborately announcing the name of the new painting with this narrativemessage from Orúnmilà:

CEO, CFO & Associates Mr.Charles Igbinidu in this write up pays tribute to the late Benin-based business mogul and philanthropist, Dr.Iyayi Efianaya who passed on at 87.

Dr. Iyayi Efianayi (MFR), a highly respected and cherished Benn City-based business mogul and philanthropist extraordinaire recently transited to the great beyond. He died at the age of 87 and is survived by wives and children. Although, he was a man of great means, he was however an embodiment of humility, love and respect for God Almighty and fellow men.

When a man departs this world, he is gone forever but his legacies will linger. He is either remembered for good deeds or bad deeds. For Dr. Iyayi Efianayi (MFR)who was born on January 6, 1931 and died October 11, 2018, he will undoubtedly, continually be remembered for his innumerable great deeds.

I had several opportunities of meeting and conversing with him and on each occasion, I left with great admiration because of his indescribable love for God and humanity.

I can vividly remember my encounter with him few years ago at the entombment ceremony of my uncle, Mr. Daniel Igbinidu who was for many years his employee. After my uncle was committed to mother earth, some other persons started leaving, I walked to him and inquired if he was about leaving so that I could see him off to the car, he said he couldn’t leave when the men of God who came to conduct the interment service were still around. He felt it would be disrespectful to God if he did that.

I was awe struck because he was not only older than the men of God but old enough to be their father. To Dr. Iyayi Efianayi, their age was of no consequence but the office they occupied and the person they represented. Since, that encounter, I learnt to revere every true man of God.

I can also remember another encounter with him during which we discussed an unpleasant issue that had to do with me. Even though, I was the person affected, I saw in him a very deep and genuine pain. The agony on his face was indeed very palpable especially because all efforts he made to sort out the issue did not yield the desired result. That is Dr. Iyayi for you, a man who would do everything within his power to be of help to fellow human beings.

He demonstrated his true love for God by the positive impact he made in the lives of thousands of people especially indigenes of his community – Egbaland in Uhunmwonde Local Government area of Edo State.

While some of his contemporaries were only interested and content with acquiring wealth for their personal enjoyment and vainglory, Dr. Iyayi’s greatest legacy is the impact he made in his community and the lives of people from far and wide in the areas of education, healthcare, provision of physical infrastructure, spirituality, employment and economic empowerment.

It was through his big-heartedness that the road that leads to Egbaland from Benin City was first constructed and a bridge built across the stream that stopped vehicles from getting to the town for so many years. It was Dr. Iyayi that used his personal resources to bring electricity to Egbaland, built and donated to the state government Egba Grammar School, a Community Health Centre and Community Bank.

It is also pertinent to mention that he successfully resisted every effort made by members of the community to name the secondary school after him. He insisted that the school should be named after the community because of his unbending disdain for conceitedness and because of his firm belief in the biblical injunction that charitable giving should be kept secret.

The singular decision to build Egba Grammar School helped in liberating or extricating many members of the community, the state and the nation at large from ignorance, poverty and disease. Many people who would not have been able to acquire western education did because of his benevolence. Unlike today, where there seem to be a glut of secondary schools in Edo state, secondary schools were relatively few then, competition was high and access to the few schools was extremely restricted especially for the children of the poor.

Another area that Dr. Iyayi blaze-a-trail in the community was in Christian evangelism. He took the Great Commission with utmost seriousness. His construction of a branch of The Baptist Church was the gamechanger for Christianity in the community. From a community peopled largely by adherents of traditional religion, the community is today preponderantly Christian.

Late Dr. Iyayi Efianayi was indeed a rare gem, community builder, a gentleman and a true man of God. He will no doubt be greatly missed by his family, friends, community, Edo state and the country at large.