The Arts

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Aishat Musa’s exploration of loneliness and nostalgia among diasporan Africans

Aishat Musa’s exploration of loneliness and nostalgia among diasporan Africans

By Osa Mbonu-Amadi Aishat Musa’s artworks tell stories of loneliness, homesickness, and nostalgia with which diasporan Africans, especially in London, grapple. Crossing to Peckham, Jollof in Brixton, Night Shift at King’s Cross, Two Weather Hearts, The Underground Gospel, Letters Never Sent Back Home, Frozen Breath in Stratford, The Afro Hair Salon on Rye Lane, Silence […]

POETRY REVIEW: Echoes of conspiracy and complicity in banditry

POETRY REVIEW: Echoes of conspiracy and complicity in banditry

Poem: Bandits and the Bandit-users Author: Enewaridideke Ekanpou Reviewer: Henry Yeigagha  There are crimes that shake nations, and there are conspiracies that sustain them. The first arrives with noise; the second thrives in silence. The first is seen in the smoke rising from burning villages; the second hides behind polished doors, official titles, political calculations, […]

Smile Studies: Uncovering the social mask behind that facial curve

Smile Studies: Uncovering the social mask behind that facial curve

By Osa Mbonu-Amadi Nigerian visual artist and curator, Adeola Ayoyinka Erinfolami investigates embodied emotions in a new series aptly titled, “Smile Studies.” As the broad title suggests, Smile Studies anchors on the various shapes of the mouth accompanying a smile. This collection demonstrates Adeola’s interest in turning fashion and textile materials into documentations. Each piece […]

Bandits and the Bandit-users

Bandits and the Bandit-users

By Enewaridideke Ekanpou Banditry is a brainwave like Ai.So bandit-users bond with bandits to ban the masses from the Republic of peace. For bandit-users, they must brainstorm with bandits to burn peace into pieces in the Republic of peace. The bandits are still hereThe bandits are still here and bonded because the bandits are bound […]

Reimagining money in Boluwatife Folorunso’s Cost of Appearance

Reimagining money in Boluwatife Folorunso’s Cost of Appearance

By Osa Mbonu-Amadi  In her work, Cost of Appearance, Boluwatife Esther Folorunso explores the Nigerian currency as a  fashion statement.  With the emblematic title “Cost of Appearance”, the artist primes visitors to expect visual narratives that ride on economic and socio-cultural terms. Cost of Appearance builds on Boluwatife’s previous work with subtitles like “Spent Monuments”, […]

Nigerian group plays ‘ZIK’, ‘OBEY’ live at London Shaw Theatre

Nigerian group plays ‘ZIK’, ‘OBEY’ live at London Shaw Theatre

By Prisca Sam-Duru  The highly anticipated London staging of ZIK and OBEY, two landmark theatrical productions celebrating the lives, legacies, and enduring impact of some of Nigeria’s most influential historical and cultural icons, have been scheduled for August 2026. The productions taking place courtesy of Lebara Nigeria and the Duke of Shomolu Foundation will be staged on […]

Lagos: Glitz, culture, tourism to mark Victoria Island Carnival

Lagos: Glitz, culture, tourism to mark Victoria Island Carnival

By Prisca Sam-Duru The usual hum of corporate engines along Ozumba Mbadiwe Avenue and many other streets in Victoria Island Lagos will be replaced by a different kind of electricity in September 2026. This is as lagosians, visitors, friends, and business owners anticipate a riveting parade of glitz and glamour during the inaugural edition of the Victoria […]

Arodan, Okunrin Meta, Jagun Jagun: Abiola’s intervention in Nigeria’s insecurity

Arodan, Okunrin Meta, Jagun Jagun: Abiola’s intervention in Nigeria’s insecurity

By Osa Mbonu-Amadi In a troubled country like Nigeria, artists who fail to use their work to address the problems of the society miss a significant aspect of the duty of an artist. It appears the Nigerian-born UK-based visual artist, Akinokun Isaiah Abiola, has taken that advice. It was the same advice the civil rights […]

Voices in Tobiloba Awogbemila’s Rhythms of Home 

Voices in Tobiloba Awogbemila’s Rhythms of Home 

By Osa Mbonu-Amadi  Against the backdrop of widespread violence in many countries, Nigerian painter and fine art photographer,  Tobiloba Awogbemila explores themes that resonate with topical socio-cultural issues. In this body of work, entitled, “Rhythms of Home – Musical Collection”, Tobiloba draws images from the domains of music and law to not only entertain, but […]

A satirical portrait of Nigeria’s misgovernance

A satirical portrait of Nigeria’s misgovernance

Title of book: Spiked Beyond SpikesAuthor: Ekanpou EnewarididekeReviewer: Ebikabowei Kedikumo This study examines satire, political allegory and governance crisis in Nigeria in Ekanpou Enewaridideke’s  “Spiked Beyond Spikes”. Using New Historicism as its theoretical framework, the study argues that the novel fictionalises Nigeria’s post-1999 political realities, especially the Niger Delta struggle for resource control, development and […]

Voices of Eyà echo @ QGallery 

Voices of Eyà echo @ QGallery 

By Chukwuma Ajakah  Q Gallery Contemporary Art, Apapa, is poised to redraw the map of Nigerian art with a show of 14 all-female artists working in painting, sculpture, and mixed media. The exhibition, opening Saturday, June 6 will run through June 27, 2026 with two sessions starting at 1 and 4 p.m.  Curated by Oke […]

I’m curating connections through storytelling, culture, creative experiences – GbolaJesu Amusa

I’m curating connections through storytelling, culture, creative experiences – GbolaJesu Amusa

By Ayo Onikoyi For many Africans living in the diaspora, culture often becomes more than tradition. It becomes memory, comfort, and belonging. For UK-based cultural storyteller, creative curator, and co-founder of Odyssey Media House, GbolaJesu Amusa, creating those emotionally meaningful experiences has quietly become part of her life’s work. Through storytelling-led campaigns, cultural programming, youth-focused […]

Temitope Ogunseitan’s OBA: Reflections of a King in Walking Canvas

Temitope Ogunseitan’s OBA: Reflections of a King in Walking Canvas

By Osa Mbonu-Amadi When you stand before a king, be slow to speak, but quick to listen and hear. In Temitope Ogunseitan’s OBA, the King speaks words that reveal things of the distant past, the present, and the future, making your own story unfold as you watch. Ogunseitan’s OBA is not a distant, mystic figure […]