At Nike Art Gallery, British Women Share In Nigerian Culture

RECENTLY, Nike Art Gallery hosted British Women’s Group (BWG), an organisation of British women or women who have British partners at the gallery in Lagos.

During the visit, which was undertaken by 20 of the women, who are of other nationalities other than Britain, they were taken through the various facets of art practised in Nigeria.

They were engaged in tie and dye right from the manipulation stage of the fabric to tying, and then dying to obtain beautiful patterns of their choice. Artists were also on hand to teach acrylic on canvas to the admiration of the visitors.

A tour of the vast gallery showed an array of works of Nigerian artists and their characteristics that encapsulate the history and rich culture of the various ethnic groups.

It was also learning spiced with fun as they learnt Yoruba and Igbo dance steps, and beat the drum to produce local music, which also served as a good way to exercise.

The women were given a feel of Nigerian fashion when they were clothed in headties, described as the crown of a woman in this part, and beads that capture Edo culture.

A young female musician, Nneka Egbuna pepped up the event with her performance of song accompanied with guitar to the appreciation of everyone.

Some of the visitors shared their experiences thus:

Anna Gregory, (United Kingdom) said: It is a lovely event showcasing lots of artists, culture and music. I think it is an exceptional opportunity for foreign ladies to be exposed to the local culture and talents.

Nina Lorenthen (Norway): It is very good, excellent. It is very adventurous and full of good surprises; the music and dances. We were involved in the dances, teaching us how to do them, and the local fashion. I really enjoyed the visit.

Jenny Moolman (South Africa): It is absolutely outstanding. Everything about it is memorable; the people, culture, fantastic ambience.

Ann Murray (Scotland): It was absolutely fantastic. The people are friendly and talents outstanding. I really enjoyed it. I have been here before. There is a lot of Nigerian culture that you can see in this place.

Claire Chambers (England): I found very welcoming people and wonderful talents and I can’t recommend it enough. I like the kindness of the people and tie and dye, and we participated in doing it. About 20 of us are here today but we are about 100 in the British Women’s Group. It is not just British women that make up the group; there are other nationalities in it.

Speaking about the visit, founder of the gallery and respected teacher of art, Chief (Mrs.) Nike Okundaye, said that the purpose of the British Women’s Group was for them to share in the Nigerian culture.

“We always have cultural day for different countries. So, it is like our Nigerian cultural day at the gallery. They are sharing in African dance and dance steps. They wear the clothes and headties to feel the culture; we ask them to try Nigerian food. Normally, we ask them to eat together in one bowl but since the outbreak of Ebola, we do not have that opportunity anymore.

“We ask them to eat with their finger how we eat in our own villages; how we used to eat pounded yam and egusi soup with our finger. But we just gave them eko, akara, dodo and chicken for this visit. We have ‘Go Women Go,’ which is what we call the workshop with the British Council in Abuja. Then we have Adara, which is the foundation. We do different activities from time to time and we make sure everybody is happy and takes something home, sharing the experience, knowledge, culture of our country and taking it back home.

Earlier, Mr. Reuben Okundaye welcomed them to the gallery. He said that the event is one of the ways of propagating arts and spreading goodwill. He equally believed that “art is one of the ways of developing the country and it can be used to encourage everyone and they will be happy.”