Essay for Discussion
Hi Everyone,
David, thanks for this very interesting essay.
I
know very little of African tribal art so I welcome opportunities such as this
to learn. One thing that I always find fascinating – and it is something we find
in the tribal art forms of many places around the world, is when we start to see
“colonial influence” on the traditional arts. For me, this is especially
revealing as it relates to the aesthetics and iconography of traditional
sculptural forms, and your essay certainly drives home this point. It says so
much about how the opposing forces of culture – traditional vs. colonial, play
on the consciousness of the people. We can gain very interesting insights into
how the indigenous people “see” the outsiders or colonialists and further – what
they view as the distinguishing features of the “out side” power (viz. Thomas
Ona’s satirical caricatures) – and indeed in some cases we see clues as to what
they might have viewed as being worthy of assimilating in the early days of
contact… since often the traditional sculpture is a “power object” and hence
changes that reveal themselves in the appropriation of colonial attributes and
forms are naturally those things viewed as high status objects of power that are
worthy of adorning powerful figures representing deities or ancestors,
etc.
You know, it is a very rare thing to be able to learn about the
artisans themselves where tribal art is concerned, so I very much enjoyed the
insights into the artist's life in your recounting of a bit of Olowe of Ise’s
biographical details.
I have a couple of questions...
Do you
agree with U. Beier, that, “ by the 1960s the traditional culture was dead”? Do
you think that the revitalization movements of traditional Yoruban religion and
culture have "saved" the traditional culture from extinction or is what we see
now in fact something unique - a combination of some old ways and some
new?
Where is the door that was crafted for the Ogoga of Ikere and traded
for an English throne after the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley? That's a
great anecdote I might add.
Finally, regarding the work of artists in the
Father Kevin Carroll “project”, such as Oshamuk, Lamidi Fakeye and Bandele... in
the photo illustrations you have added – could you elaborate a bit on what we
are seeing there? Are these “Bible scenes” with fully Africanized
characters?
Regards,
Steve Brothers
Hi Steve,
i agree with you that there is a new syncretic movement in
Nigeria, that contains elements of a old trasaditional world and the modern
world. Indeed the ancient Yoruba culture has gone forever, but something new has
replaced it. The Ikere door is in the British Museum, sorry i forgot to mentione
it in the text.
To focus on the works that were created in Father Kevin
Carolls workshop, i have showed the pictures of the reliefs to show the
diffrents. Every artist has an own individual style, but keeps the traditional
patterns. You can see on the relif mostly things that have to do with royality (
horse riders) and other typical patterns.
Those relifs are not christian
patterns, their origin is in the Yoruba culture. Sorry that there is this
misinterpretation. Only the drum was made in a christian context. I will add
soon a few more nigerian christian art to the article, to make it more
understandable.
Best regards
David