By Japhet  Alakam

Honour they say  should be given to whom it is due.” In line with this popular saying, the children of one of the greatest photographers of our time and the man who was made famous for documenting the transformations and variations found in traditional hairstyles worn by women in Nigeria  J.D Okhai Ojeikere in commemoration of his 80th birthday last week presented a powerful birthday gift to him for all his contributions towards their upbringing and for his contributions towards the growth of photography in the country.

The package which brought together friends, relations ,colleagues and the creme -de- la -creme of the society  was a one day exhibition tagged J.D.Okhai Ojeikere:A Life in Pictures, Portraits of a Photographer held at Frameshop Extra, Chic Afrique House Sabo,Yaba, Lagos.

The well attended occasion started with special prayers said for the man who in his 60 years career as a photographer executed several commissioned works for companies and agencies; after which, the cutting of the 80th birthday cake by the man assisted by his wife took place at the first flour of the building.

In the hall were displayed over 60 well framed photographs as captured by the colleagues of  the octogenarian photo journalist, commercial photographer and fine artist during his active years in the business; which he used his good sense of professionalism to preserve from the 50s’ when most of the pictures were taken till date.

The exhibition which featured 65 portraits divided into two groups, with the first group comprising of the earliest pictures which was taken in black and white from 1951 up till his first exhibition at the Nigerian Art Council, in Marina in 1974. This category also contains his first picture as a young man, very fashionable and sharp looking, some interesting pictures from the exhibition like a group picture with Erhabor Emokpae, another great artist and one of the peoples that influenced him and E.Y. Eke in 1974.

There were also some of his pictures taken while at work. For example, the one showing him weighing  photographic chemicals for mixing and some taken while he was shooting a commercial scenes.

The second category of portraits taken  mainly in colour shots, dates from the opening of his exhibition on  hairstyles at the Foundation Cartier, Paris France, which also coincided with the publishing of the book , J.D.Okhai Ojeikere: Photographs.

Here you see pictures from the Grimaldi Forum Exhibition in Monaco, the exhibitions in Houston Texas, USA and Documenta 12 in Kassel Germany in 2007.

Also displayed were his personal pictures, his pictures with members of his family and friends, some interesting pictures of his wedding, which took place in 1951 and his pictures with his wife, children and grand children on his 50th wedding anniversary in 2009.

The pictures though taken years ago are still clear and sparkling as if they are recent pictures. These pictures are no doubt, strong testimonies to  the professional touch of the man, J.D.Ojeikere and the quality of materials that were used in the processing of these pictures.

Apart from these photographs taken by him, the most astonishing photograph was the one taken recently by his 6year old grandson, who in such an early age is already demonstrating a fascinating sense of dexterity with the camera. The little boy captured the attention of the guests as he was seen running around the hall clutching a camera in his hands.

The exhibition appears  in a chronological order and reflects the history of the man over time.

According to one of the sons, Iria Ojeikere, “selecting these photographs has been very interesting and informative for us, for example, we fortuitously found markings on his negative envelopes referring to him as J.D.A.OJEIKERE, KENTURKEY PHOTOGRAPHER from his days in Ibadan, and we got to hear the story of the origin of the name Kenturkey Photographer.”

Speaking with the man, who discovered his gift at an early age in the little village of Ogute in Emai in Edo State in 1950, a gift that brought him to prominence, J.D.Okhai states that “Photography is my calling and as a matter of fact, I can’t imagine myself to have settled for any other option.”  Continuing he said “I am a fulfilled man, I feel on top of the world, I feel very highly honoured, I am grateful to God.”