Making public places a bit artsier
The book, which was launched last Saturday at the Goethe Institut, Lagos, is an account of two art projects in 2005 and 2008 that brought art into the public sphere. Two art projects involving several Nigerian and German artists conducted by Udemba who is also an artist reshaped public spaces in Lagos as performances were […]
The book, which was launched last Saturday at the Goethe Institut, Lagos, is an account of two art projects in 2005 and 2008 that brought art into the public sphere. Two art projects involving several Nigerian and German artists conducted by Udemba who is also an artist reshaped public spaces in Lagos as performances were taken to downtown areas and involved residents in the areas.
The performance, “Lagos Open” (2005) transformed an entire street in Ajegunle into an artwork. There were performance theatres by young men and women in the area who were able to appreciate the community and see a different side of it like they had never known before then. In 2008, there was another performance, “In God We Trust” (2008) which saw an artistic reinterpretation of two churches in Mushin. Again, youths and residents of the area were actively involved with the transmission of the theme to the larger community.
Both projects were targeted at dealing with issues bothering the contemporary society, life in the mega city and the role of faith in Lagos. To share these events with an even broader audience, Emeka Udemba and Goethe Institut, Nigeria presented the comprehensive catalogue, “Art Intervention in Public Space”. This publication contains in words and pictures a broad and colourful overview of the realisation of the projects and the participating artists.
The book presentation at Goethe Institut aimed at bringing as many of the involved artists as possible together and was also open for art lovers, the media and the interested public. The former director of Goethe Institut, Nigeria, Mr Arne Schneider, also joined in fun of the evening to share memories of the not-so-distant past of Lagos’ cultural scene.
Other such creative art transformations not documented in the book include, “Unframed Landscapes” at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, which succeeded in winning fine art students for similar projects. Whilst aiming at the same core, a workshop tagged, ‘In Dialogue’ for art students of the University of Nigeria in Nsukka was held by the artist under the coordination of Dr Godwin Uka of the Department for Fine and Applied Arts at the UNN.
The forum brought to light the fact that the art scene in Nigeria gained a lot of ground since the country’s return to democracy in 1999, but creativity is still bound to a relatively limited space: apart from a few exceptions, art is created, displayed and discussed only in museums and galleries.
Mr Udemba conducted a workshop for fine art students. Urging the young artists to bring their creations into the public sphere, to create a dialogue with the public and to raise questions rather than to preach opinions, Emeka Udemba concluded the workshop with a display of art in public space. Installations were unveiled at the campus and accompanied by performances.
The Goethe Institut, Nigeria continues in a series of workshops with the curator and artist Emeka Udemba to challenge the borders between an elite cultural scene and the general public.