Category: Life – The Midweek Magazine

At first sight, Tony George Chidi Akudinobi does not give the impression of a psychic in dialogue with the basic elements of his trade and art. As the engagement commences, though one is bound to form the more rounded impression that he is just a modern man getting to terms with his dreams. But by the end of the heated encounter, he does end up a rough-ended amalgam of the two.  Much like the smile perpetually plastered on the once-cherubic visage of the late-50-something-year-old affirms.

At Hammerhead Ethnika, Aba, where he holds supreme as chief articulator and basic handyman, one beheld with wonder the utilitarian statements of the workaholic-cum-everything man. Basically pieces of furniture, they are significantly supped-up with ancient, modern as well as postmodernist motifs burnished on its wood and cloth by the artist in him. Assuredly, they serve to rev up aspects of the past, present and future and man’s inexorable place in them.

Just like that the ace musician, poet and former hockey player would end up in the otherwise mundane world of interior decoration. It was more than a surprise to those that had known him in his secondary school days at Christ the King College Onitsha where his father was a senior science teacher. By his shenanigans at the time, his boon companions had nicknamed him Hippie after such musical acts like Jimi Hendrix and some local stars. An attitude he more than lived up to in manner and shenanigan too many. An avid guitarist he has since made the smooth transition to the keyboard; instruments he still plays with dexterity in his spare hours.

Any wonder then that he had started out as Hammerhead in 1986 upon relocation from Enugu where he had been otherwise engaged after graduation from the Marketing Department of the Institute of Management and Technology (IMT) six years earlier. It took him spiritual pilgrimages to such founts of Igbo beginnings like Nri, Aguleri and Igboukwu in search of self and bearing for the ‘ethnic’ aspect to manifest and take over. In this rather uncharted search for the ethereal he had happened on the realisation that Africa as a continent had a past that could never be allowed to fall into desuetude. The less so on account of the mere preachments of visiting wolves in sheep clothing that did not get a hang of what they met on arrival.

Thus his art has avowedly veered from mere decorative statements to symbols of a more internalised human-spirit liaison. All targeted in the general aid of humanity as both physical objects and as mental abstracts with its embedded artistic inscriptions. A firm believer in upholding the intimate links between the mundane and spiritual realms, he sees his work as starting from the procurement of his primary raw material – wood.

“You cannot, for instance, fell a tree without first seeking its permission,” he explains when reminded about the apparent rudeness of the act to the tree. “There are ways they animate must interact with the inanimate to avoid a collision. This must be so as it is mostly the human as the higher being that will bear the brunt. In the Amazon, for instance, it has been found that there are more positive vibrations in the treed areas. So much that as some trees get older they become portals to the spirits of the jungle.”

These higher energy levels, he stresses, are akin to what is felt by the faithful during religious rituals; like during sacrifice in traditional religion or transubstantiation in the Catholic mass.

To the observation that his art has passed many transitions since he first applied adze to wood, he sees the present phase as only a beginning. According to him, evolution is a continuous process that never even pauses though it would appear so to the human person. He sees the art and artistry of his works as a stream progressing to a destination ahead. He can only guess where it is headed with the gift of foresight, but arrived with enough dose of hindsight to make it still realistic.

At, presently, his works – be it just a traditional stool or a more complex settee – evokes a kind of duologue that even crosses the bridge between utility and flamboyance. Tasked as to whether all are just targeted at attracting a few more quid from the buyer, he replies with a demurring smile that answers the question better than the avowed reply: that if it had been about the trip to the bank, he would have stuck to just marketing other people’s products like he had learnt in school.

 

Lagos State government, in collaboration with beer brewers, will host the maiden edition of Nigeria Beer Festival from September 25 to October 1.

The festival is aimed at creating excitement during the week-long event. It will climax with the Independence Day Mega Concert to commemorate Nigeria’s independence.

The festival, which will promote responsible drinking among drinking-age (18 and above) consumers at all its touch points, will be held at the Lagos Atlantic City to give it a carnival atmosphere. It will be a gathering of the largest community of beer consumers from across the country and beyond.

The organisers of the festival, On and One Event (001) Limited, said  the state government, which is passionate about tourism, would provide massive institutional support, particularly security, transport and related logistics.

The event, according to the organisers, would see Nigeria enrol into the league of Beer Festivals around the world and boost the country’s tourism opportunities.

001  General Manager Akinola Oluwaleimu said the world-acclaimed Oktoberfest (Beer Festival) in Munich attracts more than 50,000 tourists to Germany yearly, adding that other countries in Europe and the Americas have caught the bug.

“Nigeria Beer Festival will be a carnival week of entertainment, sales and marketing and a gathering of the largest community of beer consumers from across the country and beyond, with economic value for the brands and the economy at large,” Oluwaleimu said.

The Nigeria Beer Festival will provide a fitting ambience to showcase fashion and lifestyle, as well as culture in a carnival atmosphere with various beer brands and other alcoholic drinks in Nigeria connecting with their existing and potential consumers.

According to social scientists beer is among the symbolic vehicles for identifying, describing, constructing and manipulating cultural values and interpersonal relationships. They classify different alcoholic beverages in terms of their social and cultural meanings.

Historians said beer has been popular – since times of ancient Babylon and Greece, Mesopotamia and Egypt and is one of the oldest beverages humans have produced, dating back to at least the fifth millennium BC.

Anthropologists and archaeologists also believe that it was a taste for beer, not bread that started the cultivation of barley in around 9000BC, known as the agricultural revolution. Beer didn’t just change the world; historians insist it saved it!

Meanwhile partners of the forthcoming Nigeria Beer Festival are also assured of world-standard facilities as the organisers of the Nigeria Beer Festival have partnered with reputable and qualified architects from Europe to design modular stands to fit into any shape or style desired by exhibitors. nmi Ambode is expected to close the festival during the Independence Day Mega Concert that will parade an array of A-list Nigerian artistes, which will feature eye-popping fireworks display.

 

The National Working Group of Reproduction Rights Societies of Nigeria (REPRONIG) rose from a two-day meeting on copyright licensing in tertiary institutions, more resolved on the need for adequate compensation of authors for their works.

Members were reacting to the high-level of photocopying and downloads of books in tertiary institutions.

The event was organised in collaboration with the Association of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities (AVCNU), and with support from the Nigerian Copyright Commission.

The major focus of the meeting was to develop a framework for collective management and licensing of rights in tertiary institutions for the benefit of authors and publishers.

The group, chaired by the immediate past Vice Chancellor, Landmark University, Prof Aize Obayan, was also charged with  examining and defining roles of the various stakeholders in the efficient implementation of the licensing for copyright reproduction.

It was also expected to recommend appropriate strategies for ensuring that authors and tertiary institutions maximise  benefits from the system of collective management of rights, and consider the terms of a draft licensing framework.

Participants were drawn from the National Universities Commission (NUC), National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), Nigerian Law School and the heads of tertiary institutions and representatives of various associations under REPRONIG.

Lead facilitator was former Chief Executive Officers, Australian Copyright Agency and Vice President, International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organisations (IFRRO), Mr. Jim Alexander.

Nigerian Copyright Commission Director-General, Mr. Afam Ezekude, said the occasion  provided an opportunity for sharing of information on the important development in copyright administration as well re-emphasised the relevance of copyright system to national development.

Admitting that the distribution of copyright content has assumed a worrisome dimension in the country,  he called for a strong synergy among right owners, investors in creative works, tertiary institutions as well as commercial enterprises.

“It is against this background that we commend the present initiative of REPRONIG in adopting the dialogue and enlightenment approach as a prelude to its licensing drive.

‘’It is our expectation that this will provide a platform for more intense engagement towards finding an effective solution to the issue of appropriate remuneration for reprographic activities of organised institutions and the private sector,”, he said.

The DG said efforts were on-going to reform the framework of the copyright protection to proactively respond to the challenges of the digital environment.

Chairman, REPRONIG and President, Nigerian Academy of Letters, Prof Olu Obafemi, said the meeting was in recognition of the important role participants play in rescuing the tertiary book industry in Nigeria.

He noted that authors were some of the most brilliant and celebrated in the world in various disciplines, including fiction and non-fiction, he, however, decried the pitiable fortunes of authors and publishers.

According to him, the inauguration of NWG was a demonstration of the Society’s new policy of inclusiveness and consultations towards addressing the collective management of rights in the literary field, as a first step in finding an enduring solution to some of the challenges that threatened its sustainability.

“Studies have confirmed the huge volume of photocopying and reckless abuse of copyright that goes on in our tertiary institutions. One would have thought that the heads of these institutions, themselves being authors, would be more concerned.

Unfortunately, the experience of the REPRONIG in the last two decades of its operation has been one of total neglect and even disdain from the institutions.

“With the exception of Covenant University, no other university in Nigeria has ever deemed it fit to obtain a reproduction licence,” he said.

Continuing, he added: “By taking a blanket licence, a tertiary institution will not only be avoiding the legal repercussion of the activities of its staff and students, it will also be showing the need to respect copyright, promote and encourage creativity.”

The chairman noted that members of the Working Group were carefully chosen to represent all major stakeholder groups, including the agencies responsible for the setting of standards for tertiary institutions saying: “If Nigerian institutions are to be globally competitive, it is imperative that that we begin to insist on global best practices. Together we speak the same language and that is to ensure adequate recompense for the authors and publishers.”

While commending the Federal Executive Council for approving the ratification of four copyright treaties, Obafemi tasked the government on early deposit of the instrument of ratification.

“And to translate this to concrete gains for Nigeria, we also appeal to government to hasten the transmission of the draft Copyright Bill to the National Assembly for early passage”, he said.

Ahead of the meeting, Obafemi had visited NUC with his team, where he sought the collaboration of the Commission in managing the rights of authors and publishers particularly at the tertiary level.

“REPRONIG is willing to collaborate with NUC in addressing issues of piracy, plagiarism, photocopying, digital downloads and other abuses of copyright in universities

It therefore requests the NUC to include the availability of proper licensing and rights management policy as part of the requirements for the accreditation of universities,” he said.

He continued: “While REPRONIG welcomes the increasing use of electronic libraries in universities, it insists on adequate standards to protect the interest of authors, publishers and guarantee the sustainable growth of the local book industry.”

Several papers were presented at the meeting. The Executive Secretary, REPRONIG, Barrister John Essien, took the meeting on how to reposition REPRONIG for actualisation of its goals.

He also highlighted the association’s mandate, objectives, its activities as well as challenges, and expressed the need for universities to have licences to reproduce.

According to him, an institution can have only one licence to enable the students and lecturers reproduce as stipulated by the body.

He said lack of litigation was not a result of ignorance of the activities of copyright violators, rather, right owners appeared overwhelmed by the level of impunity with which literary works were reproduced.

“The vision of REPRONIG was to have efficient management system for literary works. The mission is to ensure fair recompense for authors and publishers. If these do not happen, we have not started”, Essien said.

An international consultant – former Vice President and Treasurer, IFRRO and former CEO Copyright Agency of Australia, Mr. Jim Alexander, spoke on the global perspeectives of operations and benefits of right reproduction organizations, the tariffs, licensing and distribution of royalties as well as development of framework and strategy for licensing.

The  burden of cross-border migration makes headlines news globally every day. From the refugee crisis in Europe to African migrants going through the desert and Mediterranean into Europe, internally-displaced people across Africa and the influx of holiday makers during summer, the experience is bitter. Six Nigerian artists with strong German roots captured these in a group art exhibition titled Wanderlust. The exhibition opened on Monday at Wheatbaker Hotel in Lagos, Assistant Editor (Arts) OZOLUA UHAKHEME reports.  

Unlike some art exhibitions, the ongoing group art exhibition Wanderlust is a veritable platform to interrogate the many issues associated with people moving from point A to B,  including seeking knowledge and spiritual transformation. Featuring six seasoned Nigerian artists with strong roots in Germany, the exhibition offers viewers wider perspective for deeper understanding of emotional and physical effects of migration and hopefully increase empathy for the world’s displaced people. The exhibition is featuring 36 paintings, drawings, photographs and mixed media works and it explores the “why” behind cross-cultural, cross-border, mental and physical journeying.

The exhibition, which will remain open till mid-September, is supported by Deutsche Bank, Still Earth Holding, the German Consulate of Lagos, ELALAN, and Louis Guntrum Wines.

Of the six exhibitors, four are Germany-based while two are in Nigeria. They are Chidi Kwubiri (Germany), Emeka Udemba (Germany), Dilomprizulike aka Junkman of Africa (Germany), Jimmy Nwanne (Germany), Yetunde Ayeni-Babaeko (Lagos) and Numero Unoma (Abuja).

Walking through the exhibits viewers are confronted with images of realities and challenges migrants face at different stages of their movements, including issues of safety, economic prosperity, education, conquest, recreation, refreshment and enrichment.  Thematically, the artists explore the concept of ‘wandern’, a term of Germanic origin, drawing on our collective desire to travel and explore.

Responding to a frequently polarised and fragmented world, the artists explore the internal and external aspects of Wanderlust vis-a-vis the modern reality and ancient roots of exploration inspired by many variables.

Curator of Wanderlust Mrs. Sandra Mbanefo-Obiago said: “It is important that art helps us question, reinforce or realign our core values, which shape our individual and community evolving histories.’’ She noted that the exhibition will ‘’bring us to a deeper understanding of the emotional and physical effects of migration and hopefully increase our empathy for the world’s displaced people.”

“Wanderlust stimulates cross-fertilisation of ideas centered on issues of identity, migration, and belonging between African artists who define their practices on the continent and those in the Diaspora. All the works presented here, are a testament to each artists’ quest in exploring new visual vocabularies and the development of new techniques,” said Oliver Enwonwu, president, Society of Nigerian Artists, (SNA).

Kwubiri, who lives in Dusseldorf, has the largest exhibit in the show titled Transition. It is an acrylic on canvas that shows a human form in a sitting position (cross-legged) with arms outstretched, touching on the very essence of Wanderlust, highlighting the need to “open up” emotionally, spiritually, and physically when embarking on life journeys.  Priceless is another of his works that dwells on seeking knowledge as part of journeying in life. It shows a female form carrying some books on her head as against hawking oranges or water on the road. This is a satire on the need to educate the girl-child, especially in the Islamic societies where many girls do not have access to education. He describes it as the most-important of all the journeys. How many rivers to cross, Shadow, and Eze goes to school are his other works.

According to Kwubiri, many artists undertake some forms of travel like a spiritual transformation before going into the studio to work. Such transition, he said, is also a migration of the spirit from one realm to another.  “For me, when you study in school, it is a form of journey seeking knowledge. It takes courage to move from one point to another. I am a traveler between worlds,” he said.

Junkman of Africa, who is famous for sculptural installations of recycled objects, teaches at two varsities at Soest and Giessen. He presents a new body of fragile paper works, expressing the “transitional realities” of wanderings through human and animal forms migrating through abstract colour landscapes. His works the Friends of Matilda series are done with printing paint on paper, and tell fragmented stories of imaginary friends. Until now, he has worked on Waiting for bus using figures, City girls using junk. To him, between the sculptures, performances and installations and his current collection, nothing major has changed but the format. But one needs to look beyond the works to get the concept or message.

According to Junkman, works of art are not physical per se, but they are ideas and concepts that manifested into the physical. Such ideas, he said, can be better presented in colours, or in poems or forms. He stated that he does not collect junk or do recycling instead he collects the outcast of the society that are abused and abandoned. “I simply use junk to make statement. When you need truth go to the people’s junk. Every community has its own world view. I am interested in what human being created that remain as history tomorrow,” he added.

Ayeni-Babaeko, who is noted for her fashion photography, presents multi-layered photographs, which reflect nuanced historical African migration narratives while pushing the boundary of stylised studio images. She has a German mother. Some of her exhibits reflect what she has gone through at different stages of life while in Germany and Nigeria. One of  her works is Reconstruction photographic print that shows a human form that covers his face with his hands while many particles or issues are in flux on his back side especially the head. It mirrors what many migrants face while seeking new abode or passing through experiences to either rediscover or rebuild self.  Her other works are Regaining power, Tamed and The Holy grail.

Abuja-based writer and photographer Unoma’s pop-art paintings and poetry touch on the irony of travel, teasing out deep seated cultural sensibilities from differing African and European viewpoints. She often plays with words to produce images and memories of events that remain evergreen, has a German mother. Nu Benchmark I (Have a seat) is one work in that regard that shows a wooden bench with messages in different languages welcoming guest to sit down. Again, she uses words such as Geisha, Garri, E U (European Union) among others to evoke nostalgic feelings about events and time. She also reflects on those things and traditions Nigerians are used to, especially when outside the shores of the country.

Reach for the Stars a mixed media (acrylic, aquarelle & oil pastel) work is one of her exhibits that shows a textile design background spiced with star emblems. At the centre of the work are two letters E U in a 3-D format, but in between them is a prayer ‘go better for’. Put together, it reads E go better for U, which many will readily answer amen. Her other works include Hunger strike, (Geisha with Gari Girl) and FEAR.

Freiburg-based Udemba presents stark portraits of society’s marginalised wanderers reflecting the emotional and physical “up-rootedness” of (imi)migrants and (emi)grants. In Wanderlust 4 (Acrylic, paper on canvas) Udemba aggregates the challenges and dreams of young migrants as patches on the portrait of a human form. It is a commentary on the ordeals of Africans seeking greener pastures in Europe even at the risk of going through routes that are highly dangerous. Udemba explores the disparity in society that causes movement of young people to seek new ideas and locations. To achieve this, he deconstructs and constructs the materials in order to achieve effective composition.

Nwanne’s soulful portraits of men and women haunted by memories of fading histories are a powerful reaction to European socio-political realities. The Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka trained fine artist lives and works at Kaiserslautern. His works express different basic human conditions from within and beyond the borders of Germany. One of his paintings 51 52 Seismic Shift depicts the looming deterioration or decay of human co-existence while the ship symbolises one of man’s technological accomplishments that serves as a bridge and means of travel.

It also reveals that with the threat of war, populism, religious extremism and other extreme views, the relationship is on the brink of collapse.

“The sinking of this ship denotes the defeat of global progress made by trying to bridge the gaps between various international boundaries,” he said. His other works are Three little dreams, Between the two of us a love story between a man and The butterfly (woman) and Confrontation I, which promote and encourage women to stand up and dream big.