Christopher Uchefuna Okeke, Nok Suite, Six ,1958/59
Provenance :
Exhibited :
Literature : Okeke, U. (2019). Art in Development – A Nigerian Perspective. Beiruth: Iwalewa Books.
Notes : Christopher Uchefuna Okeke was born in Nimo in Nigeria in 1933. A seminal figure in modern, twentieth-century Nigerian art, he is also perhaps the most famous and influential historical figure in arts education in the country. Okeke’s major concern and most important philosophical contribution to the visual arts in Nigeria was what he called the process of ‘natural synthesis’. For Okeke, this process and reality for African art, in particular Nigerian art, impacted as it was by colonial education systems, in particular, had to be thought of as a new, modern style of its own, capturing both the essence of African spirituality as it was expressed in art, along with European styles and sensibilities. This was what he called the process of ‘natural synthesis’, each tradition flowing naturally into one another to establish a new way of making art and how it expressed modern Nigerian culture in particular.
Condition_report : Condition comensurate with age. Conserved by Gerda Engelbrecht, oxidised and discoloured in areas, minor surface dirt in areas, fish moth damage to areas. Professional report available on request.
