A bright-smile sweeps across her face as she sticks out her horse-tail. Clad in white cotton fabric and dozens of red beads on her hair, torso and arms, she stands out in full ceremonial representation of Ondo maidenhood. The striking image is superimposed behind a backdrop of matching red and white Ankara fabric, welcoming observers into Hafizat Adegbile’s mixed media representation of identity and heritage.
Three stunning photographs comprise the collection, with the two others being distinguished with Yellow and Orange-coded Ankara backdrops, respectively. The heavy saturation amplifies the colour composition, sharpening Hafizat’s gaze on the rich whitish tint of Ondo tradition. They are captivatingly graded to also reflect high contrast and texture, adding layers of depth to the entire creative direction and production of the images.
Hafizat’s “Fabric of Culture”, also stands out in terms of arrangement. In the final photograph of the collection, the subjects become two, as one woman sits on the floor while the other stands slouched to braid her hair. A typical maternal practice in Ondo culture, the imagery represents the nurturing spirit of Ondo women and the communal bond they share. The symmetry of the subject placement, especially in the second photograph where the subject backs the frame, reminds one of South Africa’s Sambelo Mlangeni whose “Country Girls” series on alternative sexuality documents subjects backing the frame. The three photographs appear very visually appealing, elevating the poetry and profoundness of Hafizat’s work.
Perhaps, Hafizat’s work appears as elementary pursuits, with quantity being the only requirement left to see her creativity expressed in diverse forms. Perhaps, inclusion of other cultures that share in the same theme of the collection, creating a robust and holistic exploration of Nigerian cultural womanhood and indigenous fashion.
In “Fabric of Culture”, Hafizat calculatively evokes emotion, posing a celebratory aura as well as a sombre one, juxtaposing the gentleness in simple events and the vibrancy of joyful moments. The photos, like another Nigerian artist’s work Ruth Ginika Ossai, celebrate the idea of infusing indigenous fashion into the production of digital photographs, and is a brilliant stylistic device that is poised to become more rampant in African photography.
The Ondo women, hailing from the Ondo people of southern Nigeria, embody a regal aesthetic rooted in a rich cultural heritage that continues to influence modern fashion. Hafizat’s photography opens conversation into their presence in contemporary fashion, as they feature in ceremonial styling by Nigerian entertainment celebrities, as well as in the work of ethnocentric designers like Lanre Da Silva, among others. While we celebrate their renaissance, we should also prioritize their proliferation in mainstream fashion, from street-wear to office-wear. And that is the beauty of photography, to evoke thought and shape opinion, as smartly documented by Hafizat.
Hafizat Adegbile is a computer scientist and multimedia artist. Her works, mostly photographs, have been exhibited across various galleries both in Nigeria, Europe and the Middle East, in exhibitions curated by Holy Art at Athens, and Berlin, Madeke Art Gallery in the UK, and Andakulova Gallery, in Dubai.
