Aindrea Emelife Instagram – Ever wondered about the research stage of curating a National Pavilion?
Many months ago (and continuously so) I embarked on an immersion into some key research themes. One of them being the Mbari Club.
What is maybe lesser understood, is the archiving and centralising of this research that still needs to be done. These texts are key insights into a period where a certain school of artists were emerging and imagining a new kind of art.
Against the backdrop of independence, the Mbari Club emerged as a vessel for Nigerian modernism, blending the modern artistic movements from Europe with a fervent, nationalist spirit. Founded in 1961 in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria, and later in Osogbo, Osun State, by 1962, these clubs embodied the spirit of ‘Mbari’—an Igbo concept denoting creation, often represented by an open sided house. These creative hubs became vital for artistic expression and cultural dialogue, hosting an array of performances, exhibitions, and gatherings that nurtured the talents of African artists and writers.
With a performance theatre, art gallery, publishing house, and library, The Mbari Clubs played a crucial role in shaping a burgeoning cultural identity and a modern African artistic identity. Artists and writers like Aina Onabolu, Ben Enwonwu, Uche Okeke, and Chinua Achebe, used their art to challenge colonialism and European hegemony.
Follow @nigeriaimaginary & @mowaaofficial for more insights!
#MbariClub #MbariMbayo #nigerianmodernism
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Alex La Guma, A Walk In the Night
Uche Okeke, Drawings
Bakare Gbadamosi, Oriki
Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo, 24 Poems
Dennis Brutus, Sirens, Knuckles, Boots
Felix Tchikaya U’Tamsi, Brush Fire
Black Orpheus: A Journal of African and Afro-American Literature, Cover
John Pepper Clark, Poems
Felix Tchikaya U’Tamsi, Brush Fire
Lenrie Peters, Poems
Leon Damas, African Songs of Love, War, Grief, and Abuse
Ulli Beier and Bakare Gbadamosi, The Moon Cannot Fight: Yoruba Children’s Poems
George Awoonor Williams, Rediscovery and Other Poems
Ulli Beier, Yemi Bisiri: a Yuruba Brass Caster
Ulli Beier, ed., Political Spider: Stories from Black Orpheus
Images courtesy of Josh MacPhee’s scans / justseeds.org | Posted on 06/Mar/2024 23:37:30
