The Tamesis
Yenwa Gallery has actually sealed itself as one of the leading galleries in Lagos, however, according to owner Ugonna Ibe Ejiogu, this took place nearly by mishap. Ibe Ejiogu is a Nigerian-American that matured in London and transferred to Nigeria in 2014 to seek a profession in curation, public connections and style. Since 2021, she is the head of public connections at art facility Terra Kulture, the owner of clothes brand name Cinnamon, and the head of the Organization of Specialist Artists of Nigeria.
Ibe Ejiogu informs us that in a suitable globe art information she would certainly sign up with a firm as opposed to beginning Yenwa. However at the time, couple of organizations or galleries had the ability to hire elderly curatorial skill. Therefore, Yenwa was birthed.
The gallery’s program is intentionally wide however curatorially figured out. While recognizing that Nigeria continues to be a market for painters, galleries have actually constantly included tools that are challenging to advertise: digital photography, collection, works with paper, porcelains and sculpture. Its neighborhood consists of young, interested and lesser-known collection agencies, which provides Yenwa the flexibility to present ignored or obscure musicians.
Ugona kept in mind that the Nigerian arts scene does have the possible to establish its very own schedule. “In some cases you rest there and see a musician that’s removing abroad and assume, ‘Oh … well,’ we can do far better right here,” she claimed. “We should not be awaiting outdoors resources to identify that are the musicians worth taking note of. We ought to be far better off stating, ‘These are the musicians we assume deserve your interest and financial investment.'”
She included that global acknowledgment rates, however honors usually precede from abroad prior to collecting in the house. Our objective is not to decline the worldwide phase however to rebalance it– to develop regional authority, regional self-confidence, and a more clear pipe from Nigerian galleries to lasting professions.
