‘Why we preserve history using illustrations’

Oludamola Adebowale is founder/Creative Director of ASIRI, an online culture and history magazine passionate about preserving Nigeria’s history. In this interview, he talks about their ongoing northern history project, using illustrations to draw attention to history and more. Excerpts:   You founded ASIRI six years ago. How has the journey been so far? To say […]

Oludamola Adebowale is founder/Creative Director of ASIRI, an online culture and history magazine passionate about preserving Nigeria’s history. In this interview, he talks about their ongoing northern history project, using illustrations to draw attention to history and more. Excerpts:

 

You founded ASIRI six years ago. How has the journey been so far?

To say the journey has been easy would be a big lie. The idea to start telling historical and cultural narratives started six years ago after my mother told me about the story of my maternal great grand Uncle, who happens to be the great Ogedengbe, the generalissimo that led the Kiriji war from 1877 to1893. I was so intrigued by the story that I wondered how many of these hidden stories we have all around the country. That was what set me in motion to start ASIRI Magazine, which initially started as a 5.7 MB Digital illustration art magazine telling amazing Nigerian history.

We were successful with eight amazing editions that were translated into seven different languages, including Spanish and Russian which had its translation facilitated by the Spanish and Russian Embassy in Nigeria. So, after doing that the need to start conducting proper research and archival collection of pictures and data of Nigerian history, culture and arts became more important than ever. The magazine was transformed into a brand with the objective of historical documentation, archival collection, advocacy, and promotion. This we have done for six years and still counting. It’s been a long lonely journey, due to the fact that I have financed and run the brand with my personal funds. Access to resources, books and libraries is limited, if not almost impossible.

Despite the setback and challenges, we have been able to contribute our own quota in promoting the history of this great country. Difficult as it may sound, it’s been a very interesting journey, as we have been able to develop a huge and dedicated cult followership on the social media space and had some of our researched works referenced in academic and research journals in the UK, Brazil and USA. In a way I feel fulfilled despite all odds.

ASIRI unveiled a project in 2017 tagged, Amintacciyar Hanyar Arewa (A Safe Passage to the North). How successful would you say it is?

It’s an ongoing project. We haven’t archived our desired goal on the project yet so I can’t say if it’s a success or not. I have always been fascinated with history from the Northern part of Nigeria, and I must say the North has one of the biggest and richest history ever. Sadly, enough this hasn’t been tapped into and with the crisis and unrest happening in the region, it would be heartbreaking to see some of these historical narratives and landmarks lost forever.

Before we kicked off with the project, it took me and my team eight months to develop a promotional and work/content strategic blue print. So, even though we are taking a break, we can easily pick up from where we left off. With the little work we were able to do in the North, with the help of a young team of seven intelligent students from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, I must say it has been one of the most interesting projects I have ever worked on. Once we get the needed support, we will re-start work on the project and hopefully we should be able to produce a body of work, either in a book or exhibition format in 2019.

Why did ASIRI decide to focus on the north?

Why not the North? I haven’t been to everywhere in Northern Nigeria, but having been to Kaduna, Kano and Zaria, I can tell you there is something magical and peaceful about the North. Despite all the unrest and crisis, it has been through, it still retains its serenity. I would love to really explore the North and create a connecting link and allow people to see it for the beautiful place it is. There is so much work that needs to be done there. It would take a lifetime

to extensively cover everything about Northern Nigeria history and I am willing to take this walk. Now is the time to change Nigeria’s narrative and show the world how magical our stories are. We have developed a well-structured SEO algorithm help with this, and as years go by, when anyone goes online to search about anything from Northern Nigeria, what they would see would change their perception about the Arewa states.

At the just concluded 2018 Lagos Book and Art Festival (LABAF), ASIRI held an illustration art exhibition titled ‘Colours of Our History’: The 1851 Bombardment of Lagos and Other Stories’. What inspired the exhibition?

I think it’s about time we start having public exhibitions and showcases, so that the public can see what the ASIRI brand is all about. I am a storyteller, and I tell my stories through the history of this great country called Nigeria. The exhibition is part of a project we launched last year called ‘Colours of Our History’, which is a colorful and more exciting way of telling Nigerian history. Often times people tell us our post on social media are a little bit academic, so ‘Colours of our History’ tells Nigerian history through brilliant illustrations using simple and apt language. Another thing that inspired the exhibition is the need to create works that people can interact and engage with offline. Our Ultimate aim with the project is to arrest the attention of millennials and get them involved in this journey of protecting and preserving Nigerian history, culture and arts.

The exhibition featured a performance re-enactment of the 1851 Invasion, an installation art piece and 20 illustration works that showcased other historical stories across Nigeria. How would you describe the success of this effort so far and what future plans do you have up your sleeve?

The exhibition project is still ongoing. We are planning a showcase, hopefully before the year runs out, if we get sponsorship for it. But looking at the mileage we got during the one week that the exhibition and the installation art was on public display, I would say it was a great success.

We had people that came in to view the works, children from Primary and Secondary schools came over and were intrigued with what they learnt about Nigerian history in a short while. Success of what we do can’t be judged overnight, but if any of our works can cause a stir and impact just one person, I would say, yes, it’s been successful. We plan to have at least a well-planned elaborate exhibition and showcase three times every year, and most importantly, we have plans to kick off a series of VR (Virtual Reality) and  AVR (Augmented Virtual Reality) exhibition art showcase around Nigerian history that would spark a series of positive change within and outside the country.

What aspect of Nigeria’s history do you look forward to exploring next?

Basically, we are looking at covering every aspect of Nigerian history. For next year, I am looking at going deep into the history of Northern Nigeria, Benin and Niger Delta history. These areas have mind blowing historical narratives that would shock the world if presented. Hopefully with the right resources and sponsorship, we would be able to do this.

The main objective of the exhibition project was to create mediums for dialogue and discussion around Nigeria’s history. To what extent would you say this objective has been attained so far and how do you intend to push it?

The most important thing is to create the mediums to start dialogue. Our objective hasn’t been achieved yet, but we have started and all we can do now is push harder and keep fanning the embers that will stir more fire for more discussion, dialogue and a more creative approach in promoting Nigeria’s history. We are going to create more works, conduct more research, hold exhibitions, stage plays, online campaigns and so on.

You didn’t study anything to do with the art or history. What attracted you?

I have always been a creative person with an inquisitive mind for knowledge and history. I was Editor in Chief for Dynamix Magazine when I was in 300 Level in Obafemi Awolowo University, ile Ife and held the position even after I graduated. Everything I have learnt has been a ladder to where I am now. I believe in learning as much as I can. It prepares me for the task ahead, for tomorrow. Also, I have always had the drive in me and it was just a matter of time.