Runsewe reiterates commitment to local creatives

• Drums Support For Nike Art Gallery

The Director General, National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC), Otunba Segun Runsewe (OON), has described the owner of Nike Art Gallery, Chief (Mrs) Oyenike Monica Okundaye as a woman of substance with an overriding motivation to revolutionise and empower young men and women with creative skills not only in the arts and crafts, but also in traditional adire making that will make them self-employed and employers of labour in the nearest future.

Runsewe stated this during his visit to Nike Art Gallery on Airport Road in Abuja. Runsewe, in conjunction with major stakeholders in the culture and tourism industry, had gathered at Nike Art Gallery to celebrate the commitment, hardwork, creative, ingenuity and sheer resilience of an outstanding personality in the art and culture sector, Nike Okudaye.

Runsewe added that Nike Art Gallery with centres in Osogbo, Lagos, Kogi and now in Abuja is providing employment for thousands of unemployed Nigerians. He noted that the numerous activities of Mama Nike in the art galleries are impacting Nigeria’s economy by contributing to the growth Gross Domestic Products (GDP) and stimulating overall economic growth.

Runsewe pointed out that Mama Nike art galleries have become veritable platforms for research and academic scholarship, noting that the Nike Art Gallery in Osogbo now admits undergraduate student in tertiary institutions in Nigeria, Canada and USA for Industrial Training programme in Textile Design, Traditional Arts and Culture, Yoruba Adire fabric processing and African Dyeing method.

Runsewe enjoined the media to tell the world that there is an ultra-modern gallery in Abuja that is comparable to the ones outside the country. He enjoined every Nigerian to consider Nike Art Gallery as a Destination Marketing strategy in Culture Tourism.

Responding, Okundaye expressed her appreciation for all the efforts and contributions that Runsewe has put into making the Abuja branch of Nike Arts Gallery a reality. She said the NCAC boss has contributed so much in the cultural industry and has been so supportive from the conception stage of her art gallery to the stage it is now.

She also expressed her deepest appreciation to Runsewe and the management and staff of NCAC for their support through the years.