The paintings and prints of Uzo Egonu: 20th century Nigerian artist.

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The Paintings and Prints of Uzo Egonu

20th Century Nigerian Artist

By

O lu c h u k w u O lu O guibe

D issertatio n p re se n te d to the D e p a rtm e n t of A rt an d A rchaeology School of O rien tal a n d A frican S tudies

U n iv ersity of L o n d o n

in fu lfilm en t of re q u ire m e n ts for the D egree of D octor of P h ilo so p h y in C o n te m p o ra ry a n d A frican A rt

SO AS June, 1992

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For m y sev en sisters a n d for Liz Sm all

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Abstract

This w o rk is as m u ch ab o u t w ays of looking at 20th c en tu ry A frican a rt as it is a s tu d y of one a rtist a n d his w ork. The central thesis is th a t 20th c en tu ry A frican art

can n o t be fully c o m p re h e n d e d u sin g d eterm in istic fram es a n d rig id categories. It begins b y tracin g the em erg en ce of n e w a rt form s in A frica - N ig eria in p a rtic u la r

- especially from the tu rn of the 19th cen tu ry , a process u n d e rlin e d n o t by a c ap itu latio n to the cu ltu ra l d o m in a tio n of colonialism b u t by a n atio n alist d e term in a tio n to u n d e rm in e its ideological bases by d isp ro v in g the artistic

su p e rio rity of th e w h ite m an. ■

It th e n looks briefly at the life of U zo E gonu, th e N ig e ria n p a in te r a n d p rin tm a k e r w h o se w o rk is the focus of the stu d y . To set o u t a theoretical fram e for s tu d y in g the a rtist's art, the d isse rta tio n p o sits th a t a successful a p p re cia tio n of 20th c en tu ry

A frican a rt is po ssib le n o t by co n stru ctin g an d im p o sin g g ra n d n a rra tiv e s from o u tsid e , b u t by o b serv in g closely, system s of re a d in g a n d ap p re cia tio n w ithin A frican societies. It th en ad v an ces an altern ativ e th eo ry w h ich d ra w s from the

M asq u e rad e , a central to p o s in m o st A frican cu ltu res as w ell as a com plex in te rp re ta tiv e system . Like th e M asq u erad e, posits th is th eo ry , 20th c en tu ry A frican a rt is m u ta tiv e , fu n d a m e n tally eclectic, an d essen tially tran sg ressiv e, an d

any tool w h ich ig no res this is ineffectual. Also, because the w o rk of art, like the M asq u erad e, o p e ra tes on several d ifferen t levels a n d defies the lin ear p ersp ectiv e,

no in te rp re ta tio n is absolute. Because art is a m a sq u e ra d in g act, re a d in g m u st

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re m a in sp ecu lativ e an d open.

The w o rk offers an a p p re cia tio n of aspects of E g o n u 's oeuvre, tracing his d e v e lo p m e n t of a p e rso n al lan g u ag e, his stro n g sense of co m m u n ity , an d the d iv ersity of his p ro d u c tio n a n d concerns, d e m o n stra tin g th ro u g h these the p o v e rty

of c u rre n t ap p ro a ch e s to the s tu d y of 20th c en tu ry A frican art.

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List of Illustrations

1. E g o n u , Sketch for "Two W om en Bathers", pencil o n p a p e r, 1958.

2. E gonu, "Still life in tropical g ard en", oil on canvas, 1959.

3. E g o n u , C o lo u r S tudies, co lo u red p en , 1959.

4. E gonu, Still Life Studies, 1959.

5. E go n u , "Village B lacksm ith in Iboland", oil on canvas, 1961.

6. E gonu, P o rtra it of a G u in ea Girl, oil o n canvas, 1962.

7. E gonu, S tu d y of L o n d o n B ridge, m ixed m ed ia, 1963.

8. E gonu, Life sketches, pencil, 1963?

9. E gonu, "A Boy w ith a B udgerigar", oil on canvas, 1963.

10. E gonu, "N o rth ern N ig erian L andscape", oil o n can v as, 1964.

11. E gonu, "A D og N a m e d Lost", oil on canvas, 1964.

12. E gonu, "Pitcher", oil on canvas, 1964.

13. E gonu, "Fisherm an M en d in g N et", oil on canvas, 1964.

14. E gonu, "N ude C o m b in g H e r H air", oil on can v as, 1964.

15. E gonu, "W om an w ith U m brella", oil on canvas, 1965.

16. E gonu, "W om an before a m irror", oil o n canvas, 1965.

17. E g o n u , "Freedom of G oldie", gouache on p a p e r, 1965.

18. E gonu, "C heetah attack in g its prey", oil on can v as, 1965.

19. E gonu, "Tiger", oil on canvas, 1965 20. E g o n u , "P ortrait of H iltru d ", oil on canvas, 1965.

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21. Egonu, "Leopard", oil 011 canvas, 1966.

22. E gonu, "The W orkers", oil o n canvas, 1966.

23. E g on u , "U niversal M osque", oil on canvas, 1966.

24. E gonu, "Sanctuary in the C hapel", oil on canvas, 1966.

25. E gonu, "M other a n d C hild", oil on canvas, 1966.

26. E gonu, "Battle", gouache on p a p e r, 1966.

27. E gonu, "Flight", oil on canvas, 1966.

28. E gonu, "Blind Eye to T ragedy", oil on canvas, 1967.

29. E gonu, "The W o rld in Perspective", oil on canvas, 1967.

30. E gonu, "Faith", oil on canvas, 1967.

31. E gonu, "The E nd of a Sheep", oil on canvas, 1967.

32. E gonu, "End of a Tree", oil on canvas, 1967.

33. E gonu, "Two Fighting Cocks", oil on canvas, 1967.

34. E g on u , "D eath of an E lephant", oil on canvas, 1968.

35. E gonu, "The Prisoner", oil on canvas, 1968.

36. E gonu, "W om an in Grief", oil on canvas, 1968.

37. E gonu, "N ude W om an", oil on canvas, 1969.

38. E gonu, "Exodus", oil on canvas, 1970.

39. E gonu, "A ddiction O ne", lith o g rap h , 1970.

40. E gonu, "A ddiction Two", lith o g rap h , 1970.

41. E gonu, "A ddiction Three", lith o g rap h , 1970.

42. E gonu, "A ddiction Five", lith o g rap h , 1970.

43. E gonu, "A ddiction Four", lith o g rap h , 1970.

44. E gonu, "W ar an d Peace No. 4", oil on canvas, 1972.

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45. Egonu, "War and Peace No. 8", oil on canvas, 1972.

46. E gonu, "First R etu rn after the Exodus", oil on canvas, 1974.

47. E gonu, "Second R etu rn after Exodus", oil on canvas, 1974.

48. E gonu, "W om an in h er F av o u rite A ttire", oil on can v as, 1978.

49. E gonu, "W om an R eading", oil on canvas, 1978.

50. E gonu, "Priestess of the G o d d ess of L ig h tnin g a n d T h u n d er", oil on canvas, 1978.

51. E gonu, "Priest of the Shrine of the E arth G oddess", oil o n canvas, 1978.

52. E gonu, "Lone Eater", g o uach e on p a p er, 1979.

53. E gonu, "F lam bouyant Poet", oil o n canvas, 1979.

54. E gonu, "C oncertina Player", gouache on p a p e r, 1979.

55. E gonu, "M ending", gou ach e on p a p e r, 1979.

56. E gonu, "Coffee Time", gouach e o n p ap er, 1979.

57. E gonu, "Painter at W ork", g ouache on p a p e r, 1979.

58. E gonu, "W om an Resting", oil on canvas, 1980.

59. E gonu, "Reading", gou ach e on p a p e r, 1980.

60. E gonu, "Lone Player", gouache on p a p e r, 1980.

61. E gonu, "Tasting", gouache on p a p e r, 1980

62. E gonu, "Coffee H o u se at Bad Orb", oil on canvas, 1980.

63. E gonu, "A C u p of Coffee in Solitude", scree n p rin t, 1981.

64. E gonu, "Stateless People: M usician", oil on canvas, 1981.

65. E gonu, "Stateless People: A rtist", oil on canvas, 1981.

66. E gonu, "Stateless People: A n A ssem bly", oil on canvas, 1982.

67. E gonu, "A Letter", g o u ach e on p ap er, 1982.

68. E gonu, "A Letter", gou ach e on p a p er, 1982.

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69. Egonu, "The Four Seasons - Spring", gouache on paper, 1982.

70. E gonu, "The F our Seasons - Sum m er", g ouache on p a p e r, 1982.

71. E gonu, "The F o u r Seasons - A utum n", g o u ach e on p a p e r, 1982.

72. E gonu, "The Four Seasons - W inter", g ouache on p a p e r, 1982.

73. E gonu, "Will K n o w led g e S afeguard Freedom ? 1st", oil o n canvas, 1984-85 74. E gonu, ""Will K n o w led ge S afeg u ard Freedom ? 2nd", oil on canvas, 1986.

75. E gonu, "Will K n o w led g e S afeguard Freedom ? 3rd", oil on canvas, 1986.

76. E gonu, "Will K now ledge S afeguard Freedom ? 4th", oil on canvas, 1986.

77. E gonu, "Will K now ledge S afeguard Freedom ? 8th", oil on canvas, 1986.

78. E gonu, "Man w ith Stick", black ink on p a p er?

79. E gonu, P a p e r sketches for A N ew Lease of Life, black in k on p a p e r, 1987.

80. E gonu, "Will K n ow led g e S afeguard F reedom ? 6th", oil on canvas, 1987.

81. E gonu, "Self Portrait", oil on canvas, 1989.

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The follo w in g s tu d y w as initially in te n d e d to be b io g rap h ical. In the course of the w ork, h o w ev er, it becam e increasingly clear h o w difficult this line w o u ld be. A ny s tu d y of E gonu at this stage suffers from a n u m b e r of lim itatio n s. The first is the v irtu al absence of p re v io u s discourse on the artist a n d his w ork. To in itiate such disco u rse therefo re is given to every difficulty identifiable w ith a p io n e erin g effort.

The second an d p e rh a p s m o st cogent, is the a rtist's very reticen t if m o st affable n a tu re w hich, in this case, m a d e access to his p riv ate d o c u m en ts a n d certain details ab o u t his life an d w o rk im possible. In a letter to m e d a te d 19 N o v e m b er 1989 he d etailed his p red isp o sitio n thus:

I th in k th a t there m ig h t be a p ro b lem re g a rd in g a n sw e rin g som e of y o u r fu tu re q u estio n s, if they follow the sam e p a tte rn as y o u r last. 1 will n o t a n sw e r q u estio n s w hich are v ery personal. All m y life I have been a loner an d can n o t su d d e n ly change. I do realise th a t b ecau se of m y p h ilo so p h y m y b e h av io u r con trib u tes to m y bein g invincible [sic] in the a rt scene here.

The conclusion o n reaso n s for his invisibility is contestible, a lth o u g h there is no in ten tio n to arg u e th at here. But the letter explains som e of the sh o rtcom in g s of in fo rm atio n a n d d etail w hich m ay be d etected in this stu d y . M y lim ited access to his official co resp o n d en ce, for instance, w as d iligently su p erv ise d by him . So w as access to the d ra w in g s a n d sketches in his p riv a te collection.

His h ealth has been an o th er lim itation. N o t only d id his h e a rt troubles in the eighties affect his ability to recollect details, his co n tin u in g convalescence also m e an t th a t he could n o t give fully of his tim e. N o t only d id all these p re c lu d e a serio u s

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b io g rap h ical w o rk , I believe the s tu d y w o u ld gain in richness if the situ atio n w ere o therw ise.

N ev erth eless, I ack no w led g e the a rtist's en o rm o u s h elp as w ell as his w ife's w ith in the lim itations e n u m erate d . M y ap p reciatio n also goes to O biora U d ech u k w u , m y p a in tin g teacher an d frien d of the a rtist w h o re c o m m en d e d m e for the Foreign an d C o m m o n w e alth Office F ellow ship w h ich m a d e this s tu d y possible. I ack n o w led g e the a tte n tio n of m y p ro g ram m e ad v isers at the B ritish C ouncil th ro u g h o u t the p erio d of the stu d y . T hanks also to N ike O d e d ira n w h o h elp ed tran scrib e som e of m y con v ersatio n s w ith the a r tis t I h ave enjoyed friend ly yet rig o ro u s su p erv isio n u n d e r John Picton of th e D e p artm en t of A rt a n d A rchaeology.

A ny failures of sch o larsh ip h ere are m ine.

London June, 1992

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Chapter O ne INTR O D U C TIO N

The sto ry of 20th cen tu ry A frican a rt a n d artists, like th a t of ev ery o th er artistic trad itio n , is one of sig n ifican t cu ltu ral in teractio n b etw een p e o p les across con tin ents an d natio n s w hich, especially in this cen tu ry , has b een g reatly fu rth ered by technological a d v an c e m en ts that facilitate the m o v e m e n t of p eo p les an d accessibility of reg ion s a n d cu ltu res, as well as the political reco n fig u ratio ns b e g u n cen tu ries ago th ro u g h o ccu p atio n s a n d religious in vasions a n d perfected by the m ach in eries of colonisation in th e 19th a n d 20th centuries. T h ro u g h o u t h isto ry artistic tra d itio n s an d cu ltu res in A frica h av e been sh a p e d n o t only by the in te rn a l d y n a m ic s of specific g ro u p s b u t also by the co n tin u o u s in teractio n of such g ro u p s w ith o th ers th ro u g h tra d e , m igratio n s, invasions, conquests, a n d political pacts. A n d this has n o t been restricted to in teractio n w ith in the c o n tin en t b u t alw ays e x te n d e d b ey o n d the g eo g rap h ical b o rd e rs of w h a t to d a y is k n o w n as Africa.

It is k n o w n th a t A rab incursions into the h in te rla n d s of A frica a n d the ad v en t of Islam in the S u d an significantly affected the art an d cu ltu res of these reg io n s1. On the East coast w h ere contact w ith the cu ltu res of th e m id d le East a n d A sia w as m ore p ro n o u n c e d , significant m u ta tio n s w ere p ro d u c e d in a rt a n d a rch itectu re w hich have carried to the p resen t. In N o rth e rn N ig eria m u ch of the o rig in al a rt trad itio n s, d u e to the hostile p re ssu re s a n d a n tag o n ism s of the local Islam ic aesth etic fo rb id d in g

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re p re se n ta tio n an d "idolatry", w en t into decline. W ith re g a rd to the cu ltu res an d art of the coast, scholars h av e n o ted affinities a n d su g g ested possible connections w ith cultures far rem o v ed in tim e an d distance. For instance it has b een su g g este d th a t the a rt of the Y oruba of the G u in ea coast, in several respects, recalls asp ects of the ancient a rt of the N ile valley. The staff of O ra n m iy a n , prince of Ife a n d fo u n d e r of the Edo royal d y n a sty , has been c o m p ared w ith totem ic m o n o lith s of th e P h arao n ic p e rio d in Egypt. D espite trad itio n s, it w as n o t possible u n til recent fin d s to place the b ro n ze finds of Igbo U k w u en tirely w ith in the cu ltu ral chronology of the C en tral Igbo, an d this has led to su g g estio n s that there could h av e been stro n g links w ith cu ltu res to the n o rth of N igeria an d the S u d an th ro u g h trade. W h atev er h id d e n ideological im p licatio n s there m ay be in these referential su g g estio n s, a n d h o w e v er inaccurate they m ay p ro v e to be w ith tim e, the im p o rta n t th ru st is that, for m illen n ia, Africa has h a d in flu en tial contact w ith the o u tsid e, reflected n o t only in social a n d political form s b u t also in the m aterial cultures of its groups.

It is tem p tin g , a n d has in d e ed been th e inclination of th e g ro w in g sch o larsh ip o n 20th cen tu ry A frican art, to see cu ltu ral contact b etw een A frica an d the o u tsid e only in term s of the e n co u n te r w ith E urope, an d th u s to ig n o re p re c e d e n t a n d equally rem ark ab le in teractio ns a n d a ttrib u te to the E u ro p ea n p resen ce an u n d u e u n ilateral significance. A lth o u g h reco rd s exist of contacts b etw een the W est C oast an d M ed iterran ean civilisations before 500 BC, significant contacts b e tw ee n E urope an d A frica o th er than the N o rth d ate only to the 15th century, led by the P o rtu gu ese. It is believ ed th a t C ad a m o sto of Venice d id sail to W est Africa a ro u n d 1455, b u t contact w ith the p eo p le of the coast w as only b e g u n by th e P o rtu g u ese in the G uinea C o ast a n d in the C ongo to w ard s the en d of the century. These initial contacts are believed

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to have b een of a p u re ly com m ercial n a tu re ,2 alth o u g h th ere are reco rd s of an un su ccessfu l C h ristian m ission to the Bight of Benin in 14733, sw a llo w e d u p p e rh a p s b y the m o m e n to u s u p h e av a ls of the last years of O ba E w u are the G reat, an d a stone chu rch w as erected in M b an za K ongo in 1491 a n d the K ing b a p tised .4 It is n o te w o rth y too, th a t w h en the P o rtu g u ese sen t a d eleg atio n in to the K ongo h in te rla n d to m eet w ith the K ing sh o rtly after th eir arrival in 1482, they took fo u r Ba K ongo h o stag e an d sen t th em to Lisbon as su rety .5 In a sense the innocence w hich scholars h a ste n to a ttrib u te to the early P o rtu g u ese v en tu res m ay n o t be very a p p ro p ria te .

The M banza K ongo took to the P o rtu g u ese. The K ing re n a m e d him self a n d the n obility co n v erted to C h ristian ity , one of the royal p rin ces risin g to becom e the first Bishop of the C ongo. A n a m b assad o r w as sen t from the co u rt of the K ongo to th at of K ing John II, a n d w ith him a g ro u p of y o u n g nobility sen t "to learn to read a n d w rite, a n d sp eak P o rtu g u ese , a n d ... becom e C hristian."6 Soon a school w as set u p in the capital, re n a m e d San S alvadore, a n d a m issio n ary re p o rte d in 1515 on the p ro g ress of the school. W ith the g ro w in g ch ristian isation th e arts of the c o u rt w ere affected, ch ang in g to acco m m o d ate the relig io u s m u ta tio n s in the k in g d o m a n d the initial e n th u siasm of the K ing an d the nobility. The crucifix jo in ed the b o d y of icons a n d w o u ld re m a in th ere for a long w hile ev en after the collapse o f the Christian m ission in th e C o ngo by the 18th century. In o th e r areas of c u ltu re a m a rk e d change w as tak in g place, p e rh a p s the m o st significant of w h ich w as the g ro w th of a P o rtu g u ese-A frican m u la tto p o p u la tio n , sired by the m ore irre v e re n t P o rtu g u ese in c lu d in g the clergy.7 The early, cordial a n d very close relatio n s b e tw ee n the courts of K ongo a n d L isbon en co u rag ed , quite n atu rally , the d e v e lo p m e n t of n ew tastes,

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n ew values, n ew form s w hich, even after the collapse of the chu rch , su rv iv e d into the p e rio d of the B elgium in cu rsio n into the region.

O n the G u in ea C oast the P o rtu g u ese estab lish ed a tra d e p o st in Elm ina in 1482, a n d in 1485 a d eleg atio n led b y John A lfonso d 'A lv eiro w e n t u p the coast to the co u rt of the O ba of the Bini a n d o b tain ed treaties on trad e b e tw ee n the tw o K ingdom s.8 P o rtu g u ese p resen ce in Benin reach ed its h eight, ho w ev er, u n d e r O ba Esigie (circa 1504-1550) w h en the K in g d o m itself reach ed its apogee. D ip lo m atic relatio n s w ere estab lish ed b e tw ee n Benin an d P o rtu g al a n d an a m b assad o r w as d e sp a tc h ed to Lisbon. Esigie le arn t an d spoke P o rtu g u ese, an d sen t one of his sons, O ro g b u a w ho succeeded him , to s tu d y in Europe. M issionaries an d tra d e rs w ere received.9 The cu ltu ral a n d political effects of co-operation w ith P o rtu g al g ra d u a lly d issip ated as Benin w e n t in to decline after the d e ath of Esigie. H is E u ro p ea n tra in e d successor could n o t h o ld the fo rtu n es of the K ingdom in place, n o r could those after him except for a p e rio d u n d e r E resonyen an d A k en zu a in the early 18th cen tu ry . The re su lt w as the ev en tu al fall of 1897.

The m o st significant su rv iv als from this p erio d , h o w ev er, are in the art w hich itself u n d e rw e n t a m u ta tio n to reg ister th e n e w sp irit of the tim es. A ccord in g to the N ig erian artist an d th e o rist U che Okelce, "the C hristian E u ro p ea n visual sym bol of the cross g ain ed the acceptance of th e local artists an d craftsm en w h o in co rp o rated it in their b ro n ze p la q u es an d scu lp tu re in th e O b a's palace".10 The m o st rem ark ab le a n d p e rh a p s m o st successful of these artists is the g reat p la q u e scu lp to r w h o has com e to be k n o w n by scholars as "the M aster of the C ircled Cross".

W hile this m otiva! in co rp o ratio n a n d the a p p earan ce of P o rtu g u e se figures in the visual chronicles of the k in g d o m w o rk e d fairly w ith in th e ex istin g form s an d

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trad itio n s, a n ew a rt for to u rists also d e v elo p e d especially in ivory. W h at h av e com e to be called "the A fro -P o rtu g u ese Ivories", are believed to h av e b een com m issioned by P o rtu g u ese exp lo rers an d executed to the clients's specifications ra th e r th an w ith in the strict canons of th e tra d itio n o r the artists's conceptions.11 The re su lt of this

"hybridism " as Fagg describes it, w as, in th e o p in io n of m an y , a s u b se q u e n t change in the q u ality of E do art. In relation to this p e rio d , O keke w rites ab o u t "the b eg in n in g of a n e w era in N ig e ria n art, a p e rio d m a rk e d b y the change o ccasioned b y the new ly in tro d u c e d ideas, m aterials an d techniques from the W est."12 H o w ev e r, besid e the im agery, a n d the change in d esig n a n d p ro fessio n alism w h ich the in tru sio n of a p p a re n tly o v erreach in g p a tro n s b ro u g h t in to the a rt b y im p o sin g their o w n specifications in the tru e m a n n er of the tourist, there is no historical evid en ce th a t the P o rtu g u ese in tro d u c e d n ew m aterials an d techniques. A lth o u g h ex am p les of E u ro p ean g rap h ics w ere read ily available, b ro u g h t in by the travellers, there is no evidence th a t this in itself h ad any significant influence on the fo rm of E do art, n o t even on the a rt of the b ro n ze p laq u e w h ich is m o st closely affined to tw o d im en sion al art, o th er th a n in the w eak en in g of form . Fagg describes the "A fro-P ortuguese" ivories thus:

the A frican craftsm an sh ip is attested n o t only by the re p re se n ta tio n of A fricans a n d A frican anim als, b u t by A frican m e th o d s of sty lisin g the figure a n d above all b y an A frican tech n iq u e of w o rk in g ivory: the carvings have the a p p earan ce of im itatio n s of tu rn e d w o rk , yet h av e in all cases b een executed w ith o u t u se of the lathe; a n d th e E u ro p ea n iv o ry -w o rk ers's trad itio n al reg a rd for the g reatest possible n a tu ra lism of m o d elling a n d surface texture is eschew ed in fav o u r of the A frican sc u lp to r's instinctive (sic) reg a rd for m o d e ra tio n as e x p ressed in a m in im u m for the scale of d etails.13

A p p a ren tly n o th in g ch an g ed by w ay of tech n iq u e or m aterial, c o n tra ry to O kek e's sug g estio n . It is also conceivable th a t if the trad e in to u rist a rt w as as p e rv a d in g as

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som e are inclined to believe, this possibly exerted a n eg ativ e influence on E do art th ro u g h the p re ssu re s of m ass p ro d u c tio n an d the relaxation an d e v en tu a l decline of th e in stitu tio n of a rt criticism w hich the g u ild s an d the royal c o u rt p rev io u sly exercised, ra th e r th an led to an y lau d ab le d ev elo p m en ts in style o r practice.

O keke describes the Edo artists as p io n eer tran sitio n al artists, b u t this could only be correct if one places A frican a n d E u ro p ean a rt at tw o p o les an d only sees tra n sitio n in term s of a g ra d u a l cross-over from the form er to the latter. The tru th , h o w ev er, is th a t the a rt of Benin, for exam ple, has alw ays b een "transitional", a n d th at the m o st sig n ifican t stylistic in cid en t in the ev o lu tio n of E do a rt w as n o t the a d v en t of th e P o rtu g u ese a n d the in tro d u ctio n of E u ro p ean figures a n d C h ristia n icons, b u t the in tro d u ctio n of Ife tra d itio n s of royal p o rtra itu re an d b rass casting, p re su m ab ly a b o u t 1280 w h e n the m a ster artist Ig h u aeg h u ae w as d e sp a tc h ed from the co u rt of Ife to the c o u rt of O ba O g u o la.14 In Benin, according to trad itio n , the a rt from Ife w as th en d o m esticated an d the style in d eg en ised .15

The E u ro p ea n a d v e n t of the 15th cen tu ry in Benin, th erefo re, is n o t as significant as it m ay be m a d e to seem . W h at took place h a d p re c e d e n ts an d w o u ld rep eat, w h ich w as th at artists, living an d reflecting the d y n am ics of their society an d th eir tim es, ab so rb ed th eir several aspects, an d in som e cases, y ield ed to their p ressu res.

In a sense this is im p o rta n t for the s tu d e n t of 20th c e n tu ry A frican art, especially those aspects sev erally referred to as "contem porary", "m odern" or

"international".16 The ten d en cy to eq u ate so-called "hybridism ", w h ich term w e reject as n o t accurately reflective of the p a tte rn s of cultu ral assim ilation or eclecticism , w ith decaden ce or in au th en ticity , denies th a t ability of g re a t a rt to em erg e from the

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m eetin g of cu ltu res, w hich is precisely w h a t h isto ry attests to.

It is in d eed rem ark ab le that, co n trary to the im p ressio n created by apologetic la m e n tatio n s of the "loss" of A frican a rt in th e 20th century, in N ig eria for instance, n eith er d id E u ro p e in tro d u ce its artistic id io m s n or d id it e n co u rag e their assim ilation. A fter the collapse of the P o rtu g u ese trad e m o n o p o ly in the 1530s, E u ro p ean tra d e rs an d travellers later tu rn e d th eir atten tio n to the trad e in slaves, giv in g u p b o th in tim ate contact w ith the peop les of the reg io n a n d the en th u siasm for evangelisation. W hen these re su m ed in the 18th cen tu ry w ith the decline in the slave trad e p re c ip ita ted by A bolition cam paigns a n d policies in E urope, the m issio n aries an d slave d ealers tu rn e d "legal traders" a n d a d m in istra to rs, w ere notable in th eir philistin ism . A id ed by th eir local collaborators, they w e n t ab o u t their bu sin ess w ith a b ru ta l a n d o n e -m in d e d d ed icatio n to the salvation of the 'p rim itiv e ' soul, w hich for the trad ers w as in d e ed seco n d ary to the com m ercial m o tiv es of post-slave tra d e in terests, a n d w hich p reo ccu p atio n fo u n d no room for an artistic dim ension.

The in tro d u ctio n of m issio n ary ed u catio n , a n d its initial form s, w ere d ecid ed by the conveniences of evangelical w o rk an d a b etter tra d in g e n v iro n m e n t ra th e r th an any cu ltu ral in teractio n b etw een E u ro p e a n d th e h ost peoples. M ission schools w ere estab lish ed in the second h alf of the 19th cen tu ry m erely to fu rn ish the church an d th e tra d in g com panies w ith cheap, local m an p o w er. The m issions n e e d e d in te rp re te rs a n d m in o r teachers, the g ro w in g colonial concerns cheaper m en ial w o rk ers a n d law en fo rcem en t cadres. As G allow ay has w ritten , "these early m issio n schools n ow a p p e a r to us as so m ew h a t u n in sp ire d in their conception a n d excessively u tilitarian in th eir co n centratio n u p o n R eading, W riting a n d A rithm etic (the C atechism being p rin te d alon g sid e the m u ltip licatio n tables in their text books)."17 The Rev. Birch

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F reem an 's school tim e-table of 1848 in c lu d e d G eography. T here w as n o art. As O keke has p u t it, "it is o b v io u s th a t ... cu ltu ral a n d creative ed u ca tio n w as n o t co n sid ered im p o rta n t for the converts".18

N o t o nly w ere the m issionaries philistine, as sh o w n in th eir im placable d ed icatio n to the d e stru ctio n of objects of the m aterial cu ltu res of the p eo p le am o n g w h o m they w o rk e d , th ere w as also a stro n g elem en t of racist condescension. The A frican w as believed incapable of creative en d ea v o u rs.19 It w as a rg u e d that, "rather th an im p ose on th em w h a t will en d u p b ein g a to rtu rin g load, they can be ta u g h t som e aspects o f E u ro p ea n crafts w hich w ill be useful to v a rio u s m issions in the colony".20

This m issio n ary policy of hostility to w ard s all creative e n g a g e m e n t by the converts, e n sh rin ed also in the curricu la of m ission schools, re m a in e d in place n o t only in N ig eria b u t in o th e r places till w ell in to the 20th cen tu ry , an d w o u ld d ra w an im p a ssio n e d criticism from G. A. Stevens at a m eetin g of the staff of A chim ota C ollege, G old C oast, in M arch 1928, w h ere the said M r Stevens a rg u e d stro n g ly for th e reco g n itio n of th e h u m a n ity a n d th u s eq u al creative a n d m en tal capabilities of the A frican an d the a ck n o w le d g e m en t of his rich creative p a st in the in tro d u c tio n of m ore m e an in g fu l a n d n o n -d iscrim in ato ry a rt courses in schools.21 T echnically, the d isp o sitio n of the m issio n aries an d their ed u catio n al policies c o m p ro m ise d any form of o p en artistic assim ilatio n or in term in g lin g . A ny m an ifestatio n s of creative facility in th e E u ro p ean id io m w o u ld hav e b een seen as th re a ten in g to the racist belief in

"natives" as p eo ple of lesser e n d o w m en t. A rtistic practice in the id io m of the peo p le w as c o n d em n e d as h e ath e n id o latry a n d violently com bated. Tons of a rt objects w ere seized a n d d e stro y e d in celebrated bonfires an d converts w ere w a rn e d in d a m n in g

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la n g u ag e of the irrevocably h a rsh consequences of either creatin g or k e ep in g them . For the first half cen tu ry of its estab lish m en t in the region, C h ristia n ity p ro v e d even m o re p h ilistin ic than Islam h ad been in the S u d an region.

If a n y th in g laid the g ro u n d s for m o v em en t in a specific d irectio n in the a rt of the cu ltu res in these areas, it w as the entire m atrix of the E u ro p ea n p resen ce ra th e r th a n any specific artistic influences it consciously in stitu te d o r en co u rag ed , a n d th ro u g h this p resen ce the b ro a d cu ltu ral effects of ev an g elism an d political o ccu p atio n w hich g ra d u a lly u n d e rm in e d existing stru c tu re s an d the n a tu re of in stitu tio n s in v o lv ed in the p ro d u c tio n an d p atro n ag e of art. As in the C ongo in the 15th an d 16th cen tu ries, a n d Benin, a n d even m ore so, the fierce a n d irrev e re n t o n sla u g h t of a d e te rm in e d C h ristian ity on the values an d in stitu tio n s of the host peo ples n o t only affected their influence a n d ap p eal, b u t the n a tu re a n d u n d e rly in g w o rld view s of those institutions.

In som e cases the aggressiveness of w estern cu ltural in cu rsio n s, a n d in others the n a tu ra l p ra g m a tism of the h o st cultures, w o rk ed to e n g e n d e r g ra d u a l m u tatio n s w hich in tu rn w ere reflected in the art form s. A m o ng the Igbo o n e ten d en cy w as to d o m esticate the in tru d in g cultu re, to in teg rate it in to the ex istin g fram es as a m an ifestatio n of the b ro ad n ess of reality an d existence. N o t on ly w ere aspects of the C h ristian faith assim ilated into the litu rg y of Igbo w o rsh ip ,22 som e of its icons w ere acq u ired as well. So w ere im ages of the w h ite m an w h o w as seen b o th as en em y and as enigm a, a n d for his in trig u in g p o w ers, ig n o rin g his irrev eren ce a n d b ru ta lity , w as d e em e d fit to join the gallery of forces u n k n o w n . M bari artists a p p ro p ria te d the increasingly visible ch aracter an d , as it w ere, seated him in their o w n space. Because the w h ite m a n h a d e n tered the realm of perceptible reality an d im ag in atio n , he was

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n a tu ra lly in co rp o ra te d in to the m otival sources of the artist.

It m u s t be n o te d th a t the M bari, the m u d scu lp tu re g allery p u t u p by the Igbo as sacrifice to the E arth G o ddess, is reserv ed for the d ead a n d the 'n o n -liv in g ', the m ythical y et n o t necessarily heroic. H e rb ert Cole m en tion s th a t M bari figures m u st n o t resem ble living in d iv id u a ls, o r any such in d iv id u a l w o u ld be v isited w ith in sta n t d e a th .23 It is in d e ed possible th a t the w h ite m an , lacking in in d iv id u a l id en tity an d th u s bein g generic, w as p u t in the M bari n o t m erely in ack n o w le d g e m en t of his presence, b u t also to contain him , to b an ish h im from the arena of the n o rm al an d living by c o n d em n in g h im to the space of th e non-living. In any case, it is relev an t th a t the p rocess w as no t in deference to u n d u e p re ssu re from the o u tsid e, b u t an a tte m p t to p re e m p t su ch p re ssu re by w o rk in g o u t a co n ven ien t a rra n g e m e n t w ith in ex isten t p a ra d ig m s, very m u c h in recognition of w h a t C harles L ong24 has d escrib ed as the "disjunctive" im p licatio n s of a cu ltu ral invasion, w hich situ a tio n req u ires re ad ju stm en t, a relaxation of b o u n d a rie s so as to a d m it an d co n tain the in tru d er- cu ltu re, possess, an d tran sfo rm it.

The character of the E u ro p ean d id n o t a p p ea r in the M bari alone b u t also in su ch o th e r form s as m ask in g . N ew spirits w ere fo u n d e d a n d in d e e d co n tin u e to be created to assu m e the figure and idiosyncrasies of the w h ite m an. M ask in g cos turnery u n d e rw e n t a tran sfo rm atio n alongside the g ra d u a l tran sfo rm atio n of society as a w hole, n o t in deference to the o u tsid e r cu ltu re b u t in ack n o w led g em en t. W h atev er a p p ro p ria tio n s w ere m a d e w ere fitted in to the b ro a d fram es o f existing stru ctu res, an d the in co rp o ratio n w as n a tu ra l a n d n o t d istin g u ish ed . C u ltu re has alw ays w o rk ed th a t w ay, w ith o u t n e ed in g situ atio n s of vio len t im p o sitio n or tran sfig u ratio n .

M ore d isjunctive resp o n ses w o u ld occur side by side in d ifferen t areas and

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d ifferen t reg ion s, u n d e r d ifferen t circum stances an ex am p le of w hich is the prescrip tiv e p a tro n a g e of Y oruba scu lp to rs in the 1950s by the C atholic m ission. The scu lp to rs w ere b ro u g h t in by the ch u rch to recreate C h ristian icons an d p ro d u c e an ecdo tal pieces illu stra tin g m orals from the Bible in the u su al Y oruba idiom and w ith o u t reference to E u ro p ean visual in terp retatio ns. Q u ite instru ctiv ely , this d id n o t p recip itate a d irect fall in s ta n d a rd s th o u g h it in tro d u ce d a w h o le set of n ew im agery, p reo ccu p atio n s, a n d relatio n sh ip s. The project w hich The Rev. C aroll e m b ark ed u p o n in O ye Ekiti w as m ore affined to the Bini m odel of cu ltu ral re la tio n sh ip , w h ereb y the existing trad itio n goes into th e service of the o u tsid e r cu ltu re in ste a d of a p p ro p ria tin g it, b u t b ecau se it lack ed the v u lg ar m ercan tilism of P o rtu g u ese to u rist p a tro n a g e and w o rk e d w ith g reater u n d e rsta n d in g , lest w e say sy m p ath y , of the h o st cultu re, it w as able to p ro d u c e w o rk w hich, a lth o u g h it serv ed a n ew in stitu tio n a n d n e w stru ctu res, h a d the freed o m to in v e n t its o w n creative resp o nses to its d e m an d s.

The a d v e n t of a n ew artistic id io m or tendency akin to th a t of E urope, w as only one m ore respo n se, no m o re significant th a n the foregoing, a n d , as n o ted earlier on, in the case of N ig eria, it beg an w ith in the h o st cu ltu re a n d in sp ite of, ra th e r than d u e to, d irect E u ro p ean or C h ristian policies on art. The one m a n cred ited w ith being the earliest re c o rd ed N ig erian to d ra w a n d p a in t in the E u ro p ea n m a n n er, beg an this on his ow n. It is k n o w n th a t A ina O n ab o lu w as n o t the first W est A frican to practice p a in tin g a n d the g rap h ic arts in the verisim ilar m an n er of R enaissance E u ro pe,25 b u t he is certainly the earliest reco rd ed W est A frican on the c o n tin en t as o p p o sed to o u tsid e, to do so by teaching him self. W hen O n ab o lu [1882-1963] b eg an to d ra w as a school boy in Ijebu O de in the 1890s, copying o u t illu stratio n s from E u ro p ean religious a n d b u sin ess literatu re,26 it w as h a rd ly a m an ifestatio n of a cu ltu re in dem ise

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c ap itu latin g to the in v ad er. As w e n o te d above, n eith er w as E u ro p ea n a rt p e rv a d in g or easily accessible, given the ra th e r b lu n t tastes of the E u ro p ea n co m m u n ity at the tim e, n o r w as it directly in tro d u c e d a m o n g th e p o p u la tio n o r the converts. In stead , it w as they w h o noticed it, a n d m a d e a conscious effort to a p p ro p ria te ra th e r th a n yield to it. A lth o u g h O n ab o lu felt it w as the "true art", the re la tio n sh ip b etw een the c u ltu res in this case p re c lu d e d any obvious im positions. T rue, a colonialist cu lture need s n o t "im pose" itself directly, at tim es w o rk in g even m o re effectively th ro u g h a subtle pro cess of su b v ersio n an d g ra d u a l in tru sio n , a n d w hich fact in this case explains O n a b o lu 's stra n g e p e rcep tio n of the E u ro p ean id io m a n d his alm o st fanatical p red ilectio n to it th ro u g h o u t his life. But the d ra w n o u t o p p o sitio n of the m issio n aries to any artistic activity on the p a rt of converts ra th e r w o rk e d at a tan g en t, n o t only p re v e n tin g im m ed iate p o p u la r deference to it, b u t also effectively alien atin g it for a long tim e. O n the o th e r h a n d , th e u n d e rm in in g of those so cio -cu ltu ral in stitu tio n s w h ich h ad alread y b eg u n the m ore n a tu ra l process of assim ilatin g the experiences into th eir o w n spaces w as eq u ally inim ical to a m ore co n sp icu o u s reflection of the E u ro p ean elem en t in the art of the colony.

W hile cu ltu ral tran sfig u ratio n s are u su ally only an asp ect of g en eral socio

political co n fig u ratio n a n d h isto ry of ideas of a society, q u ite often, a rt w o rk s ah ead o r b e h in d ra th e r than in tune w ith the rest of these dynam ics. The ad o p tio n of g rap h ic v erisim ilitu d e in N ig erian art, for instance, is an exam ple of a case w h ere the artist p resag es a p h e n o m e n o n in d e p e n d e n t of the d ecid ed w av e of socio-dynam ic factors. Just as aspects of the E u ro p ea n presence w ere stra in ed a n d d ra w n in to the a rt tra d itio n s of the colony, the idiom of g rap h ic v erisim ilitu d e w as a d o p te d , n o t d efe rre d to, w ith the p io n eers w o rk in g in d e p e n d e n t of the E u ro p ea n to p ro p a g a te it,

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th u s being able to influence its peculiarities an d direction. B etw een 1900 a n d 1906 w h e n he fin ish ed school an d took u p a job w ith the colonial m arin e d e p a rtm e n t in Lagos, O n ab o lu w o rk e d o n his o w n w ith o u t e n co u rag em en t or ap p ro v a l. H e m a d e use of his a d v a n ta g e d p lacem en t to ob tain m aterials from E n g lan d , a n d ap p lie d his resources n o t on ly to a rt practice b u t also to the teaching of his chosen idiom . T hat his d e d icatio n w as s h a p e d by his considerably d eferen tial d isp o sitio n is of less im portance. H e saw the canons of n atu ralism , like the science of p ersp ectiv e for w hich he becam e w id ely k n o w n all over Lagos, an d the strict a d h eren ce to the details of an ato m y, n o t as in v en tio n s of E u ro p e b u t as b elo n g in g to a u n iv e rsal artistic 'la n g u a g e ' o p en to all cultures. H e w as actively d isco u rag ed a n d su b tly th reaten ed by E u ro p eans, an d in d eed here w e fin d one of the rare ex am p les in the history of cu ltu res w h ere a cu ltu re actively stan d s in th e w ay of its o w n p ro p a g a tio n am o n g a differen t people. In 1910, for instance, a J. H o llo w ay of the N ig e ria n R ailw ay, Lagos, w ro te to h im thus:

I am h a p p y yo u y o u rself realise the d a n g er of goin g y o u r fo refath er's w ay ... by creatin g the type of a rt th a t o u r chu rch can q u a rre l w ith... I cam e back from A beokuta a few d ays ago, an d I m u st h ere b rin g to yo u r k n o w led g e w h a t the Rev. in o u r chu rch said. This Rev. g en tlem an stro n g ly re b u k e d the con g reg atio n for their stu b b o rn d e v o tio n to their idols w h ich he re g a rd ed as h e ath e n objects. T hey w ere co n sid ered u n g ra te fu l p eo p le w h o could n o t ap p reciate w h a t G o d h ad d o n e in their lives ...Though you once said th a t y o u r o w n art is special ...I am n o t trying to d isco u rag e y o u r type of art for the colony, b u t k n o w in g y o u r p o te n tia l very w ell, you m ay have to th in k w ell a b o u t its acceptance in the colony.27

D espite reactions such as this, he c o n tin u ed to w ork a n d to p u s h the n ew tendency.

B etw een 1900 a n d 1920 he m a d e a consistent and relentless effort to convince the colonial e d u catio n d e p a rtm e n t to in tro d u ce art in the schools, b u t these m et w ith little o r no e n th u siasm or favour. A co m m u n icatio n b etw een h im a n d the d e p u ty directo r

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of the d e p a rtm e n t in Lagos in 1919 typifies the reluctan ce of the colonial a d m in istratio n . O n ab o lu h a d w ritten to the d e p a rtm e n t to g ra n t h im p erm issio n to teach a rt in fo u r schools in the Lagos area on the advice of h e a d m asters of m ission schools w illin g to give the n ew subject a try. In his letter, he p o in te d o u t the g reat a d v an ta g e s of in tro d u c in g w h a t he described as "the p restig io u s a rt of d ra w in g and p ainting," an d m a d e reference to his alread y p ro v e n ability in it a n d the co m m en d atio n of h ig h ly p laced p erso n ages in the colony. H e also attach ed his curriculum vitae as w ell as the nam es of th ree referees. In his rep ly of 3 A pril, 1919, the acting d e p u ty d irecto r of e d u catio n in the colony, M r L. R ich ard s, re g re tte d th a t he w as n o t d isp o se d to g ra n t the p erm issio n so u g h t, referrin g O n a b o lu back to the school heads. He h o w e v er p o in te d o u t w ith all sy m p ath y th a t it w as d o u b tfu l that the m ission h e a d s w o u ld n eed his services.28

O n ab o lu w as n o t d eterred . He collected w illing e n th u siasts a n d gave them p riv ate tuition. E v en tu ally som e of the school h ead s, c o n trary to the d e p u ty d ire c to r's sarcastic p ro n o u n c e m en t, took h im on, a n d w e are told th at at som e p o in t he w as teaching fo u r schools in the Lagos area, equally u sin g his g ro w in g p erson al influence to sp re a d the idipm . In his practice his in ten tio n w as in d eed no t to a p p ro p ria te an artistic ten d en cy b u t to p ro v e th a t it w as n o t c u ltu re specific an d could no t, by its very n a tu re , be seen as a m an ifestatio n of the s u p e rio rity of one cu ltu re o r p eo p le to another. There are am big u ities ab o u t his p o sitio n b etw een the cu ltu re w h ich p ro d u c e d h im a n d the in v a d in g cu ltu re w hich co n fro n ted him an d his gen eratio n . N ev erth eless, he saw in the practice a n d p ro p a g a tio n of the n ew artistic ten d en cy n o t only its red efin itio n as a su p ra -la n g u ag e b u t also an affirm atio n of the capabilities of his o w n cu ltu re, a re state m e n t of his equ ality w ith the E u ro p ean , is n o t

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in dou bt. It is in terestin g th at for him proficiency in the a rt w as n o t a m an ifestation of cap itu latio n to the in v a d in g cu ltu re b u t a tool of nation alistic reaffirm atio n an d a n n u lm e n t of colonialist su p rem acism . W h eth er this w as a valid or effective form of n atio n alism is su b o rd in a te to the fact it w as so in te n d e d , th e fact that, th o u g h its definable sta n d a rd s w ere set by E u rop e, it w as all the sam e n o t in te n d e d as self

v alid atio n before E u ro p e b u t as the in v alid atio n of E urope, fitting qu ite firm ly w ith the p articip atio n of A fricans in the su b se q u e n t g reat w ars w h ich u n w ittin g ly serv ed the p u rp o se of rev ealin g or confirm ing th at, as a h u m a n , the E u ro p ea n is no t d istin g u ish ab le from others. If the A frican could sh o w th a t he cou ld do w h a t the E u ro p ean claim s to possess solely the ability to do, then he succeeds in re tu rn in g the latter to his rig h tfu l p o sitio n of o rd in a ry h u m a n , an d p u llin g from u n d e r his feet the false ideological p latfo rm of colonial occu p atio n an d d o m in atio n . In oth er w o rd s, it could in d e ed be a rg u e d th at it w as valid as a form of n atio n alism , a tool of direct co n fron tatio n w ith the racist philo so p h ical fo u n d atio n s of colonialism .

In 1920 O n ab o lu , w ith the help of frien d s an d p a tro n s, w e n t to E ng lan d to stu d y a rt at the St. Jo h n 's W ood College, after several years of d istin g u ish e d practice a n d teaching. A ccord in g to his son, D ap o O nabolu, his m ission w as to acquire

"w hatever he co u ld of the E u ro p ea n sciences of p ain ting , p ersp ectiv e, an ato m y a n d the o th er specialisations a n d ancillary disciplines w h ich characterise E u ro p ean art ed ucation".29 H a v in g p ro v e n h im self quite co m p eten t in these areas long before 1920, a m ore logical reaso n for O n ab o lu 's p e rio d in art colleges in E u ro p e w o u ld be the d e term in a tio n to p lu g all holes in his claim to eq u ality w ith the E u ro p ea n , as w ell as the calculation th a t a d ip lo m a in teaching w o u ld place him m o re fav o u rab ly to gain finally the official a p p ro v a l he n e e d e d to in tro d u ce a rt teach in g to schools. A lth o u g h

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these tw o reasons w o rk together, the earlier is in d eed of g re a ter im p o rtan c e because it defines n o t only the ch aracter of the m an b u t also a p h ase in the m ak in g of the 20th cen tu ry A frican artist.

It is clear that, at least in the case w e have looked at so far, the d e v elo p m en t of the v erisim ilar id io m in p a in tin g could be defined in p h ases, the earliest p h ase bein g th a t of cu ltu ral n atio n alism th ro u g h the m astery of the id io m an d the nullification of its E urocentric preten sio n s. School ed u catio n w h ich w as in stitu te d to p ro d u c e cheap h a n d s for church an d colonial g o v ern m en t, w as a p p ro p ria te d in the m ach in atio n s of the colonised as a g ro u n d for u n ra v e llin g the m y stiq u e of the E u ro p ean p re p a ra to ry to his dislo d g em en t. The novelist C h in u a A chebe has sh o w n how , in this p h a se of the e n co u n ter b etw een th e "native" an d th e E u ro p ea n coloniser, it w as d iv in e d th a t the m ore p rag m atic ap p ro ach of a cq u irin g the tools of the coloniser an d d o m esticatin g them w as n o t only a w ay of u n d e rm in in g the m oral and ideological fo u n d a tio n s of the in cu rsio n by p ro v in g equality, b u t also of confronting h im on his o w n g ro u n d s.30

These b eg in n in g s of v erisim ilitu d e in p a in tin g a n d the g ra p h ic arts - an d it is im p o rta n t to m ake this defin itio n since there w ere alread y tra d itio n s of verisim ilitu d e in the scu lp tu re of several A frican societies, in Ife an d a m o n g the Igbo for instance, long before the a d v e n t of E u ro p ean s - w ere therefo re a p a rt of the general re a d ju stm en ts of these societies in th eir b id to either confront, re p u lse, or assim ilate a n d d o m esticate the E u ro p ean p h en o m en o n . A n d this ra n parallel w ith re a d ju stm en ts a n d ex p an sio n s w ith in existing artistic idiom s an d trad itio n s to re in te rp re t and acco m m o d ate the sam e p h en o m en o n . The w ork of O n a b o lu 's g en eratio n w as therefore a m u lti-p ro n g e d process, m an ifestin g no t only in the in tro d u ctio n and

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a d o p tio n of easel n a tu ra lism b u t also in n a tu ra l in n ov atio n s in m a sq u e ra d in g , so called 'tra d itio n a l' scu lp tu re, as w ell as o th er areas of art a n d life, in d e ed the entire w o rld view of the colonised. A n d the a d v e n t of easel n a tu ra lism as a sin g u lar strain of resp o n se n eith er defines n o r circum scribes 20th cen tu ry A frican art.

If the early stag e of this d ev elo p m en t w as strict in its a p p ro p ria tio n of aspects of the con ven tio nal E u ro p ea n id iom as a w ay of su b v ertin g the in v a d in g culture, w hile at the sam e tim e in ev itab ly d isen g ag in g from aspects of the existing artistic trad itio n s, the nex t p h a se in the c o n tin u in g process of cu ltu ral n a tio n a lism so u g h t a rein teg ratio n w ith in those traditio n s. In the N ig erian case this stage b eg an w ith bo th the a d v e n t of the next g en eratio n of self-trained artists after O n ab o lu , as w ell as the a p p earan ce on the scene o f the British a rt teacher, K enneth C. M u rray . A fter his re tu rn from E u ro p e in 1922, O nab o lu w as finally officially assig n ed as an art teacher to schools in Lagos an d the environs. By 1926 the load w as u n d e rs ta n d a b ly too heavy for one teacher, an d O n ab o lu re q u e ste d of th e colonial e d u ca tio n d e p a rtm e n t th at an o th er a rt teacher be a p p o in te d . In the absence of can d id ates in the colony, the a d m in istra tio n b ro u g h t M u rray in31. H e w as, ho w ev er, h eld in h ig h e r re g a rd by the colonial ad m in istra tio n th an O n ab o lu an d , in the w o rds of O loidi, "given an alm ost exclusive reco g nitio n [and] m an y p o w erfu l responsibilities: a rt teacher, travelling teacher, A rt S up erviso r, E ducation Officer, an d , th o u g h unofficially, p re serv e r of N ig erian an tiq u ities, all d u ties p e rfo rm ed alm ost at the sam e tim e."32

M u rra y 's p ercep tio n of the relatio n sh ip of the colonial to his cu ltu re at this p e rio d w as quite d ifferen t from O n abo lu 's. For him it w as m o re im p o rta n t th at colonial peo p les reflected their o w n cu ltu res a n d e n v iro n m e n t in their art, irrespective of the m ed ia o r idiom . M u rray e n co u rag e d his stu d e n ts to p o rtra y scenes from the

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ev ery d ay life of th eir societies as a m eans of p re serv in g a n d p e rp e tu a tin g their in d e p e n d e n t id en tity. If O n a b o lu 's them es a n d m eth o d s w ere too stee p e d in the E u ro p ean trad itio n , as they w ere p erceiv ed to be, M u rray ta u g h t his stu d e n ts to eschew su ch levels of the "alien" elem ent. O nly th u s could th ey be correctly e n g ag ed in cu ltu ral natio n alism .

The differences b etw een O n a b o lu 's m e th o d s a n d p o stu la tio n s an d M u rray 's could be ex p lain ed at several d ifferen t levels. O n one level, as a p a rt of the colonising cu ltu re M u rray w as incapable of c o m p re h en d in g a n d a p p re cia tin g accurately, especially at the level of m en tal an d em otional in v o lv em en t, the tru e state of the colonial's m in d in relatio n to the E u ro p ean presence in his society a n d culture. A t a p u re ly intellectual level, he could discern a n d possibly e m p ath ise w ith the intricate co n trad ictio ns w h ich are the inevitable p a rt of cultures in the process of creating ro o m for an o th er, b u t lacking the privilege of belo n g in g in these cu ltu res, his p ercep tio n of their realities w as inescapably h a n d ica p p e d . H e w as u n ab le to see the elem en t of co n fron tatio n an d cu ltural n atio n alism in O n a b o lu 's a p p ro p ria tio n an d p ro p a g a tio n of v erisim ilitu d e an d oth er aspects of the co n v en tio n al E u ro p ea n idiom .

The differences b etw een the A frican artist an d the E u ro p ea n a rt teacher w ere fu n d a m e n tally those of the in sider a n d the o u tsid er. W h at the o u tsid e r p erceiv ed as self-rejection an d an un n ecessary effort at self-validation in th e colonial, w as on ly the la tte r's w ay of reso lv in g the em erg en t contradictions of his experience,33 an experience w hich, because he d id n o t possess it, he could n o t also fully grasp . W hile the e n th u siastic an d sy m p ath etic o u tsid er, or w h a t Susan Vogel n o w refers to as the 'in tim a te o u ts id e r'34, finds rejectionism a b e tte r resp o n se to the in cu rsio n of E u ro p ean cu ltu re if the colonial m u s t p reserv e his o w n culture, the latter is alw ays better

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d isp o se d to devise his o w n a p p ro p ria te respo n ses even if th ey a p p e a r co n trad icto ry or c ap itu lato ry .35

D espite his g en u in e in terest in the cu ltu res he m et, a n d his d ed icatio n to their p reserv atio n , M u rra y in a sense failed to u n d e rs ta n d these c u ltu res and their p red ilectio n to n o t only a g ra d u a l tran sfo rm atio n , as is the n a tu re of cu ltu res, b u t also to w h o leso m e a p p ro p ria tio n of oth er cultures. A com bination of colonial p o w er, even if no t ack n o w led g ed or consciously ap p lied , an d the req u isite alienability of the foreign m in d , u n w ittin g ly re su lt in b o th u n d u e ov er-zealo u sn ess - h e w as re p u te d to possess the en erg y a n d restlessness of five m en36 - an d a p o n tificato ry a ttitu d e to c u ltu ral conservatism . Som ehow , in sp ite of all go o d in ten tio n , it is im p o ssible for the colonising cu ltu re, o r an y p a rt thereof, to devise an a p p ro p ria te resp o n se to itself for the colonised. O nly the latter can ad eq u ately w o rk o u t its o w n a p p ro a ch even to the th reats of a vio len t in v a d in g culture.

The M u rra y elem en t in N ig eria a n d the school of a rt it e n g e n d e re d , re p re se n t the earliest form of a p a tte rn w hich w o u ld ru n th ro u g h 20th A frican art, an d its a tte m p t to define for the colonised w h a t form cultural n atio n alism sh o u ld take, m arks the direct in v o lv em en t of E u ro p eans in 20th cen tu ry A frican art. As the earliest ex am ple of this strain , it is rem ark ab le h o w m u ch the art p ro d u c e d by M u rra y 's p u p ils falls in place w ith those p ro d u c e d by th e several 'w o rk sh o p s ' an d a rt centres th a t w o u ld later s p ro u t all over the c o n tin en t u n d e r the d irectio n an d fo sterin g of o th er E u ro p ean a rt teachers. The M u rray m e th o d w as the b e g in n in g of the school of 'a u th e n tic ity ' in 20th cen tu ry A frican a rt app reciatio n , an a u th en ticity d efin ed o u tsid e of the cu ltu re it su p p o se d ly signifies. This n o t only re p e a te d u n d e r M cEw en in R hodesia37 a n d G eorgina Betts in N ig eria,38 am o n g m an y o thers, it also trig g ered the

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sp ro u tin g of d istin ct su b -strain s like w h a t, for w a n t of a b etter w o rd , are d esig n ated 'p o p u la r a rt' a n d w hich, because of this stro n g affinity to th at w hich is co n sid ered the 'a u th e n tic ', th a t is, faithful to the "native's" cultu re in the th in k in g of the o u tsid er, h av e becom e for the W est the "preferred version" of 20th cen tu ry A frican art.

The m o st p ro m in e n t tend en cy in m o st of these is a lack of stro n g affective p resence, of excellence in skill, technique an d use of m aterial. The im ages are rem ark ab ly characterless, lacking in the in g en u ity w hich assim ilation an d re in te rp re ta tio n p ro d u c e d in, say, M bari houses, or the precision of im ag ery in the strain w hich O n ab o lu rep resen ted . W ith o u t m ean in g to arriv e at a critique w ith o u t criteria, there is a sense in w hich the artistic tendencies w h ich h av e g ro w n o u t of d irect E u ro p ean in v o lv e m e n t in the forging of A frican art, h av e all p ro d u c e d a level of decadence, if w e m ay take decadence to su m u p decline in the acquisition and rig o ro u s ap p lication of skill, failings in the exertion of the creative im ag in atio n w hich g en erally re su lt in decline in the so p h istication of desig n a n d the visu al reso lu tio n of concepts, a lack of su sta in e d originality, an d rep etitiv en ess39 d u e b o th to this m in im ality of creative g en iu s and to the p ressu res of m e rc an tilist p atro n ag e.

Inevitably the a rt d eg en erates into to u rist curio, an d th e process is so quick it is h a rd ly noticeable especially since the line b etw een it a n d the later is so thin it is alm ost non-existent. M ost exam ples of w h a t w e m ig h t call E u ro p ea n -in d u c e d art in A frica have p ro v e d , at a certain level, am enable to this descent: the so ap -sto n e scu lp tu res of Z im b ab w e, m islead in g ly called Shona an d d e v elo p e d u n d e r the tutelage of a British c u ltu re bro ker, P o to p o to a rt fro m C entral A frica, O sh o gb o a rt from N igeria. It w o u ld be w ro n g to im ply th at only this strain of 20th c en tu ry A frican art has given in to to u rist voracity, b u t w h ere this has h a p p e n e d from w ith in the existing

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id io m s, it is d u e to the collapse of o riginal, su stain in g w o rld s of v iew a n d stru c tu re s of p atro n ag e. In the case of E u ro p ea n -in d u c e d art, it is m ain ly d u e to an in h e re n t w eak n ess d eriv in g from a fu n d a m e n tal colonialist im p in g e m e n t on the d y n am ics of cultu ral tran sfo rm atio n.

In the s tu d y of 20th cen tu ry A frican a rt a n d artists, it is im p o rta n t to note th at it is in d e ed the above tendencies, ra th e r th an th a t exem plified in the w o rk of O n ab o lu , th a t is E u ro p ea n -in d u c e d , a n d th a t it is the latter, m o re th a n the form er, th a t re p resen ts an a u th en tic internal resp o n se to the colonialist presence. If the term

"authentic", w hich w e shall be d e n o u n cin g later in this stu d y , s h o u ld ever be ap p lie d to any aspects of or tendencies in 20th cen tu ry A frican art, it is in d e e d th at w hich ev o lv ed no t th ro u g h the sy m p ath etic im positions of the E u ro p ea n keen on h elp in g the "native" p re serv e his "ow n cultu re a n d w ays", b u t th ro u g h th e in tern al devices of the colonised in com ing to term s w ith the encroaching culture. These devices m ay th en be p erceivably conservative, in w hich case a rt absorbs the n ew experiences into its existing form al stru c tu re s, a n d thus effectively n eutralises th em by acco m m o d atin g them , or ex trem ist an d rejectionist, in w h ich case they e v en tu ally p ro v e u n w o rk ab le a n d u n realistic since they defy the m u ta tiv e essence of culture. T hey m ay also be seem ingly radical, w h ereb y the form s of the in v a d in g c u ltu re are carefully a p p ro p ria te d a n d su b v e rte d on a b ro a d level by the colonised u sin g th em to d isp ro v e the u n iq u en ess or su p e rio rity of the coloniser an d th u s the valid ity of colonial occupation. In cid en tally , ap p reciatio n of 20th century A frican art has consistently failed to discern a n d place the latter correctly.

If d ev elo p m en ts in all aspects of A frican a rt in this c en tu ry can be perceived as p h ases of cu ltu ral n atio n alist resp o n se to the colonialist in cu rsio n , a fo u rth p h ase

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could be seen in the 1950s in N ig erian a rt w h ereb y artists w o rk in g in the ten d en cy b e g u n by O n ab o lu beg in to red efin e the a p p ro p ria te d form a n d to reassess the resp o n se to colonialism . A t this stage in h istory, d isp ro v in g colo n ialist su p erio rity w as no lo n g er of p a ra m o u n t im portance. O th er historical ev en ts h a d a lre ad y offered th e colonised o p p o rtu n itie s to do this sufficiently an d on a m o re effective and practical political level. The G reat E u ro p ean w ars p ro v id e d g o o d g ro u n d for soldiers from the colonies to confirm their equal h u m a n ity w ith the E u ro p ean . Also, w ave after w ave of y o u n g A frican intellectuals h a d cro p p ed u p , h a v in g p ro v e d them selves a d eq u a te ly in E u ro p e a n d A m erica, a n d h a d o p p o rtu n ity to s tu d y the colonialist on his o w n g ro u n d . The p e rio d of rig o ro u s self-validation w as over, an d n atio n alism , bo th political a n d cu ltu ral, w as no w g eared to w a rd s n o t on ly the collapse of the colonial stru c tu re b u t also the reco n stru ctio n an d reco n so lid atio n of the colonial p e o p le's o w n stru ctu res. The essence of reactive tendencies in art w as no lo n g er to p ro v e the eq u ality of cu ltu res an d p eo p les b u t to co m p re h en d the tim es g en erally w ith in the context of a free people a n d in d e p e n d e n t cultures. A rt w as no longer form alistically com bative ag ain st the o u tsid e r b u t revisionist, tak in g tim e to review elem ents w h ich w ere originally re le v an t in its confro n tatio n w ith the other.

The w ho leso m e an d uncritical a p p ro p ria tio n of the form s of conventional E u ro p ea n v erisim ilitu d e a rt w as called into question. It is n o te w o rth y th at its a d o p tio n at the tu rn of the cen tu ry deliberately ig n o red d e v elo p m en ts in E urope at the tim e w hich ironically also q u estio n ed its suprem acy. The specific idio m of the E u ro p ean E n lig h ten m en t, a n d n o t the ab erran t form s at the b eg in n in g of this cen tu ry , w as seen to be m ore re p resen tativ e of colonialist cu ltu re a n d p o w e r stru c tu re , and for this reaso n w as the a p p ro p ria te idiom to be de-ethnicised to effectively u n d e rm in e

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The paintings and prints of Uzo Egonu: 20th century Nigerian artist.