The Chinese proverb “the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” captures the humble entrance of Life in My City Art Festival (LIMCAF) into the Nigerian and African art scenes. In the beginning days of LIMCAF, I had wondered how long it was going to last before going the way of other cultural enterprises that have graced our part of the world. Sustaining art initiatives is not one of Nigeria's strongest suits.
Think of our national museums and the nation's network of National Galleries that barely exist beyond offering formal employment to civil servants. So, it was not entirely out of line to ponder the sustainability of LIMCAF which has since grown into a prestigious event in the continent's cultural calendar in the last thirteen odd years. It is not lost on anyone that the reason for its resilience and consistency is the tireless dedication and sacrifice of the individuals who steward the project. They have insisted that it will not be business as usual and that getting things right is not alien to our national culture. It has not been easy, but resilience has kept the organization going in that earnest desire to showcase emerging talents.
It is pertinent to note that LIMCAF builds on a Nigerian tradition of social entrepreneurship that dates all the way back to the turn of the twentieth century. AinaOnabolu, widely regarded as the country's pioneer modern artist created a what may be described as the initial structure of a local art scene through the patronage of the black elite circle in colonial Lagos and in his activities as a roving art educationist. The entrepreneurial zest would become heightened in midcentury, echoed in the activities of the 1960s Mbari Artists and Writers Club, in Ibadan under the direction of Ulli Beier, as well as independent activities by artists such as Uche Okeke who would set up the Enugu Mbari Art Center subsequently, and has continued to the present day. The Pan African Circle of Artists (PACA), arguably the most decisive artists' collective in Nigeria since the 1990s, is one great example given its proximity to LIMCAF. Members of PACA such as Ayo Adewunmi have been part of LIMCAF from the outset, contributing immensely to the festival's successes and longevity over the years.
Although Lagos remains the country's focal point for artistic activities and a cultural Mecca of some sort, LIMCAF succeeds in thrusting Enugu into the national consciousness as a viable cultural space. Its focus on the city as a subject of creative attention and intellectual discourse is worthy of note if one considers the United Nation's Drivers of Migration and Urbanization report which suggests that sub-Saharan Africa is the world's fastest urbanizing region and such startling projections that its current population of 472 million people will double in the next 25 years. According to this forecast, Nigeria's population is expected to grow to about 401 million people by 2050, making it the largest in Africa and the third largest in the world, and with the urban area accounting for at least seventy percent of this staggering figures. In this sense, LIMCAF's focus on the city as the agglomeration of experiences is truly prescient. Over the years, it has accepted submitted entries that have dealt with the subject of the city from multiple perspectives by artists working in a variety of media and art forms such as the more conventional painting and sculpture, photography which is now firmly rooted as a fine art medium in Nigeria, and experimental installations. The works have been mostly figural but also abstract and conceptual. One must admit, however, that quality of work has remained uneven. In some editions, the works achieved a critical level of sophistication and conceptual depth, while in others the works were mostly pedestrian and decorative.
The Festival's theme has oscillated between the didactic to the existential. This year's theme of The Other Side poses both an existential and ontological question. What might the other side mean? It could mean a general recognition of the obverse of a range of things pertinent to an individual, the community or the nation. For the individual, it could be a question related to the current status and a desire for a better outcome, what could be possible that is yet to come. This would include improvement in social status, good health, economic mobility, career prospect, desire for a life partner or child. It might also relate to the question of life after death, something that a majority obsess about. Nigeria is a country driven by the fear of the unknown, death, and perhaps the otherworldly, hence her legendary religiosity. It is also known for its contagious aphorism optimism mirrored in the aphorism “when there is life, there is hope.” This means that for an average Nigerian, there is a strong desire to thrive against all odds. In other words, there is the strong desire to live, to remain and make hay in this plane of existence. However, the last few years may have shattered this perspective, betraying it as an illusion as the national mood now indicates. Death by suicide has increased by an alarming proportion since the current administration came to power. The state of mental health and economic depression in the country have reached a tipping point. The otherworldly is no longer fearsome. People now elect to exist this realm of existence on their own terms. “Which way Nigeria” is the title of the 1980s mega hit by the late Sunny Okosun who bemoans a country that is consistently on the brink of one catastrophe after the other. As such, “The Other Side,” here might mean what are alternatives to the many ailments (kidnapping, insecurity, economic hardship, etc.) besetting Nigeria currently.
An equal opportunity platform, LIMCAF has proven to be resilient and has indexed itself on the national consciousness. It has a widespread reach across the country than any similar platform, offering emerging artists the opportunity to gain critical exposure. It has continued to happen as an annual event which emerging artists look forward to for their first taste of recognition. It has continued to widen its catchment through a liberal zoning process that enables more artists around the country to participate. In this sense, its approach reminds one of Option A4, a political experiment by the Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida to ensure that the political process is truly grass root driven. Such retail approach perhaps is LIMCAF's biggest achievement in evolving a truly national competition, one that is participatory, democratic, and based on merit. LIMCAF has discovered and helped to launch the careers of emerging talents. Some of its great successes include Uche OkpaIroha and Ngozi Omeje who have since become active on the international scene. For example, OkpaIroha has won the Bamako Biennale's top prize on two occasions, in 2010 and 2015. The current class of hortlisted artists including Josiah Chinedu, Adeyemi Gideon, Doris Chukwuma, Obeka Edoh, George Egunjobi, Ogochukwu Ejiofor, Kpananki David, and Desmond Uglagbe, reinforces the important work done by LIMCAF. From its Enugu base, LIMCAF shows what sustained engagement, dedication, and sense of duty can mean in creating a sustainable art event that is highly anticipated every year despite its lean resources. LIMCAF lives on and endures.
Ugochukwu Smooth C. Nzewi
New York, October 2019
