Sunday, May 22, 2011

Great Quotations on Modern art in Nigeria by Bruce Onobrakpeya

Prof. Bruce Onobrakpeya  MFR
 
  • The past, the present and the future are all part of the same continuum, as long as we take with us the best of our time tested values, we have nothing to fear. We can be assured that we will always remain relevant as Africans

  • Art itself is a reflection of the life of the people. . . The art that we create is helping to give our people self-identity. For one to call himself an artist, one has to take a leadership role. Not just merely producing art works, but producing art works which are backed by ideas and philosophies which are calculated to help upgrade and uplift the life of the people.
  • Nigerian art rivals the best in the World.  
    • My art is Linked to the Spiritual.  
      • The quality of sunlight is strongest in the tropics, West African and Nigerian art have very vibrant and bright colors which reflect this strength and luminosity of light.   
        • The modern man propelled by the spirit of the jet and information age is too busy to observe little things in nature, the artists has a duty to draw attention to these details of nature, for very often the answers we often seek, are in the details provided by nature, which are often overlooked.  
          • El Anatsui’s works have not only impacted on several upcoming artists, but his work continues to impact on, even his peers. It is this kind of relevance and creativity that institutionally the Harmattan workshop Series strives to rekindle and replicate in the contemporary art of Africa. 
            • Nigerian art is dynamic because it is the product of cross fertilization and influences from at home and outside. This hybrid quality inherent in it, means that it can never be stagnant.   
              • Every artist must have a Mount Everest which he plans to scale, in my own case, i have chosen the Annual Harmattan Workshop as a platform, which will not only artistically empower todays artists, but will also produce tomorrows greats of the future. 
              •  Ulli Beier should be rightly considered as one of the fathers of modern Nigerian art.