Art
NIGERIA
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The International Route Of Nigeria Art As the world begins to notice the rich history behind Nigerian artwork, the art scene is bringing attention to a country of creativity and opportunity. In no small way, art reflects the story of the people from which it comes. With traditional African art, such as sculptures, textiles, masks and pottery being born out of utilisation, modern art has transformed over time to include practical and decorative items. These movements helped to change the relationship that artists and consumers had with art, and the result has been fruitful. In the world of Nigerian art, the Zaria Rebels is a name that cannot be overlooked. The Zaria Rebel Society was a group of undergraduate students who completely altered Nigerian art in the late 1950s by rejecting the established means of teaching art and creation and expression. This defiance was motivated by the political state of Nigeria at the time. As the country was on the verge of gaining its independence from Britain in 1960, anti-colonial revolts, labour disputes and the foundation of Nigerian art education led to the establishment of diasporic networks and international gatherings of black writers and artists. These gatherings created an environment where the Zaria Rebels could express their postcolonial discourse more freely. Fuelled by the intense feelings of
nationalism before and after gaining independence, the Zaria Rebels gave in to their desire to create new art that expressed the diverse cultures of Nigeria. The Rebels fought against the colonialist threat of erasing local art traditions, styles and ideas. They were formed with the aim of returning to their African roots and rejecting the visual arts teaching methods brought by expatriate Europeans. Almost immediately after Nigeria gained independence, a second group of artists emerged as creative expression flowed throughout the country, setting an art movement in motion once again. Between 1962 and 1966 in the Yoruba town of Oshogbo in southwestern Nigeria, a group of artists, including Susanne Wenger, Ulli Beier, Georgina Beier and Nike Okundaye, gathered together in workshops to combine traditional subject matter with Western art techniques and media. They called themselves the Mbari Club, and the result of their informal art lessons became a blend of genres that set a new standard for Nigerian artists and pushed the art world forward. What the Mbari Club created was a postmodernist, post-colonial, contemporary art form that the world had never seen before.
