Unifying Nigeria, Italy through art
In explaining the celebration, Amb. Colamine said, “The nucleus of the event was the celebration of the unification of Italy which took place one hundred and fifty years ago and was proclaimed officially on Mach 17th, 1861. The Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed after the unification of several smaller kingdoms and states into which the […]
In explaining the celebration, Amb. Colamine said, “The nucleus of the event was the celebration of the unification of Italy which took place one hundred and fifty years ago and was proclaimed officially on Mach 17th, 1861. The Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed after the unification of several smaller kingdoms and states into which the Italian peninsula was previously divided.”
The event which was attended by art lovers and critics including top government officials and other representatives of federal agencies and ministries had a second phase which was an exhibition of works of Nigeria’s Ben Ibebe. According to the envoy, this was organised, “in a bid to raise the awareness of the public about the potentials and the talents of the artists living today in Nigeria.”
In the framework of the anniversary celebrations, guests at the residence of the Ambassador had an insight into the recent development of figurative arts in Italy through works of contemporary Italian painters. The 10 participating artists were Matteo Basile, Angelo Bellobono, Filippo Centenari, Francesco Cervelli, Alberto Di Fabio, Stefania Fabrizi, Omar Galliani, Jonathan Guitamacchi, Adriano Nardo and Davide Eron Salvadei.
Co-curator of the exhibition Marta Boeri explained saying, considering the fact that Nigeria is a fast growing country with regards to the arts, it was necessary to organise such cultural exchange to help build bridges. According to her, “People have found similarities in the works of the Italian artists with landscapes and other sceneries in Nigeria particularly the works of Francesco Cervelli whom for many, resembled the creeks and mangroves of the Niger-Delta region.”
Ben Ibebe’s work which are a mélange of rich impasto textures with blocks of colour like-panes of stained glass put together to form different images, landscapes, attires and other forms, were very well received. Ibebe’s expressionist style impacted on viewers like Eugenia Ameh the density of life in Nigeria. “I love the vibrancy of the colours, the strength of his stroke and the harmony with which they all come together to depict the different spheres of the Nigerian everyday life.”
The artist who gets inspiration from people, their response to social, economic and political forces in their daily lives says the issues, events and ideas he deals with arise from “humans’ quest to contain and contend with these forces from the subject of my paintings.” Given this background, he says, his works are highly figurative with women deliberately accorded prominent attention. “The African woman is strong, beautiful and flowery. So I celebrate her by weaving my composition around her, most times in her hour of need, joy, pain and other activities.”
While Nardo’s depicted the influence of pop culture on fashion in drawings and painting in Diana’s Mirror, Cervilli’s monochrome pieces brought about a cultural fusion in the scapes and sights of both nations.
The unity of Italy was proclaimed in Turin the then capital, on March 17th, 1861, with the capital moving later to Florence and 10 years later to Rome on June 2nd, 1964. A tri-coloured cockade in green, white and red, the colours of the Italian national flag is the symbol of this celebration.