Category: Life – The Midweek Magazine

The Director-General, National Gallery of Art (NGA), Abdullahi Muku, could not have been more apt in capturing the essence of notable art collector, philanthropist and business mogul, Sammy Olagbaju who passed on recently.

”We have lost a giant in the industry,” he said. “He will be truly missed, especially at this time when we are trying to raise the bar in visual art as part of ways to diversify the economy. He was already doing things in that regard…”

Indeed, in a conversation with Aaron Kohn, director, Museum of African Design (MOAD) in Johannesburg, South Africa and director of Auriti Art Advisory, the avid art collector was quite succinct on his optimism for visual art practice in Nigeria. “The market for African, nay, Nigerian art, is expanding and its prevalence at art fairs is noticeable.”

And on his collection, he said: “The core of the collection comprising Sammy Olagbaju Art Musuem (SOAM) will be Nigerian art. My collection holds a number of modern and contemporary works by various artists from various countries; but Nigerian art deserves a platform and increased exposure. Presently, I’m not concerned with the notion of African art. One of the aims of SOAM is to showcase and preserve Nigerian art for all who have an interest in art – from scholars, to artists and the general public. We wish to pay homage to our artists.”

For Olagbaju, who was a member of National Gallery of Art think-tank, collecting works of art was a passion, almost a calling. Starting out in 1967, precisely 49 years ago, he had until his death acquired 1,500 works! As he told Kohn in the conversation, his collecting habit was not entirely inspired by galleries.

“When I began collecting in 1967, there were a number of privately-owned galleries and art centres in Lagos. The Goethe-Institut, the Italian Institute, the French Cultural Centre and the Russian Institute – all sponsored exhibitions and encouraged Nigerian artists. I attended as many of the exhibitions as I could. I patronised many artists, thus forging relationships with a lot of them. I was interested in their work and circumstances and I got to know and appreciate their skills as reflected in their work. Most had attended art colleges and polytechnics – self-taught artists were few.”

Ancestral worship is a common ancient practice in several parts of Nigeria. For the well- being of the living, Africans believe that it is very important to communicate with the ancestors. The ancestors or the dead are said to have power to intervene in the affairs of the living.

In traditional society, there are certain places like shrines and forests or some families or communities built as a meeting place with the ancestors. Ancestors are believed to be spirits. So, most of the time, replicas are made with wood, stone and iron to represent the ancestors.

 

The Kalabari

The Kalabari people live on the costal Delta of the Niger River. The  Kalabari are related by language to a larger group called the Ijaw, but maintain a distinct culture. Their major occupations are fishing and trading. Their religions and art reflect the importance of their marine environments to their livelihood. According to their tradition, it is widely believed that their ancestors remain very active in their community and family affairs even after death.

The Kalabari treat their ancestor with great respect. They honour the spirit of their important ancestors by constructing an elaborate memorial screen for them in remembrance of their great achievements.

The Kalabari believed by doing that, their ancestors have been given a good resting place.

The early Kalabari society consists of small villages and communities with complex family lineages or groups of different sizes. Members of a lineage live together as a land holding unit controlled by an elected head or chief. Late in the 15th century, their economy became largely dependent on trade. Their location around water areas was an added advantage when the European merchants began voyages to Africa. The Ijaws served as middlemen in the exchange of gold, ivory and slaves for European products. The trade with Europeans made some families to become wealthy and their social statue changed considerably. Trading (activities) involved both export and import of goods and services. These trading houses consist of an elected head, and members comprising men and women of different origins who were adopted into the lineage as sons and daughters.

Both kingship and economic interests bound the members of a trading house together. Many of the trading houses acquire great wealth and economic powers, and the successful house head is highly honoured and respected for his accomplishment

 

Religious belief of

Kalabari people

Religiously, the Kalabar believed in two types of spirits, which controlled and influenced a lot of things in their life. One of these spirits is the Duen (forehead).

Duen is the spirit of the dead, the ancestor that looks after the living and intercedes with God on their behalf. The strength and influence of every lineage depends on the spirit of the deceased leaders. For the Ijaw people, they believed that one’s immortal spirits resides in the forehead.

 

Ancestral practice – Duen Fubara

In the traditional Kalabari belief system, the living dead or the ancestors, are particularly important spirits who have a great influence over the daily lives of the living. The Kalabari attend to the needs of these ancestral spirits known as Duen, to ensure that the spirits will continue to bring good things to the family and community as a whole. When a particular important member of a treading house dies, extra great care is taken to ensure its well-being.

Regularly in the past and occasionally today, relatives, commission artist to produce a memorial screen to immortalise the person.

Then a screen will be constructed. The screen will be placed in an inner room of the treading house behind an altar of three mind pillars where offerings are regularly made to the deceased spirit following a big consecration and installation of rituals. The head of the deceased person’s house brings food and drink to the altar every eight days to appease the spirit.

 

Features of Duen Fubara object

Like other memorial screens made during 19th century, Duen Fubara is made out of “Odumdum wood. Due to the importance the Kalabaris attached to the Duen, they believed that the Odumdum tree belongs to the heroes and cannot be easily polluted. Traditionally, the Kalabaris have motifs or patterns that are restricted to the dead.

The heads, bodies, appendages and accessories are individually carved and assembled with nails, staples and pegs in relief against the backdrop of a framed screen.

Also featuring on the screen are the followers or “house people” who were messengers to the ancestors. They carved to the left and the right of the ancestor. The objects that these messengers held in their hands are of great importance and have meaning in revealing the heroic exploits of the ancestor while on earth.

On the memorial screen, the house people flanked the major character (ancestor) who wore crown, indicating royalty and those who controlled coastal trade. For example one of the messengers is holding a skull, which suggests that the ancestor represented during his lifetime captured a very big and important man from an important house.

The masquerade on the head of the ancestor is that of Ekpe-cult with its numerous skulls suggesting that the ancestor was the head of Ekpe-cult when he was alive.

Both the messengers and the ancestor wore skirts around their waist. The pegs above the frame probably supported a row of small heads that symbolised the great numbers of dependant the leader had. On the ancestors hands were elephant tusks and staff, which indicate power and command. Certain features of the ancestral screen – the mouth, the eye, pupils and noise are differentiated in blue and white colours.

Ancestral worship is a common phenomenon in Nigeria.

Apart from the Kalabari, other prominent tribes in Nigeria also have ancestral figures as a means of worship and paying of homage to their ancestors. Good examples are Edjo ancestral (Urhobo) in Delta State.

This ancestral figure is being venerated by the people and is being kept in their community shrine. Urhobo people believe that Edjo protects them.

It also has similar features like Duen – Fubara through one of the largest wooden carved figure.

It has two messengers or servants by his right and left hand sides with a big round hat on his head.Also the Oron people inAkwa Ibom honour their dead with wooden figure (Ekpu). They believe that the spirit of the dead living in the carved figure is overseeing the affairs of the people.  They celebrate twice in a year.

Haba is another ancestral figure from Agulu in Anambra State. This figure is placed in the shrine for the dead hero and Agulu people appeased haba spirit yearly, it protects them.

Mummuye from Adamawa State intercede for the people hence they appease the spirit occasionally.

The concept of ancestral worship is one phenomenon that is rather very strong in typical Nigerian traditional societies. In other words, it is not counted to the Kalabari alone. As mentioned above, other prominent ethnic groups in Nigeria such as the Yoruba, the Urhobo, the Igbo, the Efik etc also believe and practice ancestral worship. The way this is done may differ, the concept or idea is the same.

However, the practice is only sustained in the belief system and the people. This is because, death as something that every mortal must experience, is seen by others as end of life on earth.

In spite of the threat of modern religion to this practice, it is still being sustained by the people as part of their traditional heritage that must not be allowed to die.

Flora Nwapa’s epic novel, Efuru is 50. And the National Organising Committee (NOC) for the EFURU@50 celebrations, led by Dr Wale Okediran, is on the move. With them are the late writer’s son and lawyer, Uzoma Nwakuche (Chairman, Flora Nwapa Foundation) and Paschal Mebuge Obaa (Enugu LOC Chairman).

Other members of the committee on the visit were Chinyere Obi-Obasi, Ikeogu Oke, Salamatu Sule and the committee’s Secretary, Glory Obasi.

From Lagos to Maiduguri, their recent stop was Abuja. The tour is part of the committee’s preparations for the forthcoming commemoration of the book’s 50th anniversary, which is scheduled to hold across five cities between November 29 and December 11.

In Lagos, the team, along with Nwakuche and Obaa, were received by Prof Hope Eghagha, Head of English Department, University of Lagos (UNILAG) and Lagos LOC Chair and the Dean of the Faculty of Arts Prof Muyiwa Falaye, who received them on behalf of the VC. At the meeting, Falaye pledged the university’s support for the event, which will kick off from UNILAG on November 29.

The next stop was University of Maiduguri, where the team met with the two Deputy Vice Chancellors, Prof Aliyu Shugaba (DVC Academics), Prof Godowoli (DVC Central Adminstration), the Registrar and Director of Works, who received them on behalf of the Vice Chancellor, Prof Ibrahim Abubakar Njodi, who was away on official duties. The LOC Chairman, Dr Razinat Mohammed, whose postgraduate work were on Efuru, reminded the gathering that the late Nwapa, was a visiting professor in the university between 1997 and 1998, during which she introduced the Creative Writing course to the Department of English.

In view of this, she observed that bringing the celebration of Efuru to the institution was very appropriate. Uzoma said his mother’s stay in the university was one of her most enjoyable in her academic career. Prof Shugaba apologised for the VC’s absence and promised that the university would support it since the celebrator was once a member of the university’s staff.  He reiterated the university’s commitment to a strong academic tradition, the main reason the University remained open throughout the very difficult six-year insurgency period in Borno State.

Other members of the LOC are Dr Abubakar Othman, Mr Bulama, Elisha Isiah, Francis Okoye and Miss Akiya Amos.

At the University of Abuja, the NOC members were received by the Dean, Faculty of Arts, Prof Effiok Uwatt and the Chairman, LOC, Prof Vicky Sylvester, Dean of the Faculty of Science, Prof. Abu Mallam, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Dr Musa Olaoye, Dr Daniel Omatsola and Safiya Yero.

At the meeting, Okediran explained that Nwapa was being celebrated because of her position as the first African woman published writer. “This was why the Flora Nwapa’s Foundation has decided to organise a five-city celebrations between November 29 and December 11, 2016. The visit, therefore, was to intimate the VC of the Abuja leg of the celebrations, which has been fixed for December 3 and December 6. While a Children’s Carnival will take place at the NTA’s Arena on Saturday, December 3, a symposium, which will attract local and international scholars will take place in the University on Tuesday December 6 2016,” he said.

He sought  the university’s support for the event.

In his response, the VC thanked the Committee for choosing the university as one of the conference venues. While acknowledging the significant contributions which the Humanities have made to the nation at large, he hoped that the Sciences would do the same. He promised that the university would do all it could for the success of the forthcoming events.

Prof. Uwatt thanked the VC for the promises and promised that the Faculty of Arts will do everything to make sure that the event was a huge success.

 

THE 1979 /84 set of Anglican Commercial Grammar School, Osogbo is planning to raise about N20million for the development of the institution.

The fund, which would be sourced from members, private organisations and philanthropists in two years, would be used to fix urgent infrastructure decay, especially  projects that would be of benefit to the 42-year-old school, according to its Director of Administration, Mr. Adewole Afolabi.

Afolabi, who spoke at the maiden re-union of the set in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, where the set’s Principal, Pa Emmanuel Oyetade and some former teachers were honoured, emphasised the need to strengthen public-private partnership as a veritable tool for development.

“Our intervention activities are geared towards complementing government’s efforts as government alone cannot shoulder all the responsibilities of funding education. Besides, it is going to be our own way of giving back to the institution that made us what we are today,” he said.

According to him, the school will be restored to its past glory if other sets emulate this laudable idea of the 79/84 Set.

The set’s President, who is Registrar, Osun State Polytechnic, Iree, Maruf Salawu, expressed his happiness for meeting most of his colleagues 32 years after leaving the institution. He pointed out the need to intervene positively to preserve the school for future generations. While lamenting the rot that public schools had become, he said solution to turn the tide rested on everybody.

Specifically, to turn the alma mater around, Salawu, a lawyer, suggested the need to inquire on whether the school had a survey or a master plan and how this had been infringed, the need to intervene on the structural decay of the school, ways to contribute to the improvement of  students and their education, as well as impacting on the teachers who are in the school now.

He said the teachers should feel the impact of the old students while there are urgent needs for interconnectivity among the old school colleagues for positive improvement.

Value was further added to the convivial atmosphere with paper presentation by two notable alumni, Hon Justice Kola Adegoke of the High Court, Osogbo, who spoke on “Importance of Will” while Dr Nasir Waheed, Medical Director, Ola-olu Hospital and Maternity, Idiroko, Ogun State, spoke on “Heart attack and heart failure” with emphasis on the need to live a healthy life.