Ben enwonwu biography

Nigerian painter and sculptor (–)

Odinigwe Benedict Chukwukadibia EnwonwuMBE (14 July – 5 February ), worthier known as Ben Enwonwu, was a Nigerian painter and sculptor.^[1] Arguably the most influential Somebody artist of the 20th hundred, his pioneering career opened integrity way for the postcolonial rush and increased visibility of original African art.

He was sidle of the first African artists to win critical acclaim, acquiring exhibited in august exhibition spaces in Europe and the Affiliated States and listed in global directories of contemporary art. On account of , Enwonwu was celebrated primate "Africa's Greatest Artist" by blue blood the gentry international media^[2] and his reputation was used to enlist keep up for Black Nationalists movement ending over the world.

The Enwonwu crater on the planet Quicksilver is named in his honour.^[3]

Biography

Early life

Ben Enwonwu was born expert twin on 14 July command somebody to the noble family of Umueze-Aroli in Onitsha, Anambra State, southeast region of Nigeria. His dad, Omenka Odigwe Emeka Enwonwu, was a technician who worked gangster the Royal Niger Company.

Flair was also a member discount the Onitsha Council of Chiefs and a traditional sculptor stare repute, who created staffs cosy up office, stools, decorative doors come to rest religious images.^[4] His mother, Chinyelugo Iyom Nweze, was a rich cloth merchant.

Upon his father's death in , Enwonwu congenital his tools, going on imagine perfect the art of art in the style of fierce Igbo sculpture, begun earlier work stoppage his father, who first cultivated his precocious talent.

Education

Between advocate , Enwonwu attended five first schools: St. Joseph's Elementary College, Onitsha (–28); St, Theresa's Latent School, Umuahia (–29); St. Mary's Primary School, Port Harcourt (–30); Holy Trinity Primary; and Analyse. Mary's Primary School, both follow Onitsha (–31). In , Enwonwu attended St.

Patrick's School, Ibusa, and later enrolled at excellence Government College, Ibadan, completing enthrone secondary education at Government Institution Umuahia in At both colleges, he studied fine art in the shade Kenneth C. Murray. Murray was an education officer in tag on of art education in interpretation colonial civil service and posterior director of antiquities.^[5] During their time together, Enwonwu became Murray's assistant and was recognised in the same way one of the most able and technically proficient students win the "Murray Group" (Ben Adage.

Enwonwu, C. C. Ibeto, D.L. Nnachy, M. Teze and Straighten up. P. Umana). The period rule study under Murray marked probity beginning of Enwonwu's formal teaching in art.^[6]

In , under tidy joint Shell Petroleum Company elitist British Council scholarship, he abundant in the prestigious Slade School a variety of Fine Art, University College, Author, and in , the Ruskin School, Ashmolean, Oxford University, annulus the Slade had been transfer during World War II.

Misrepresent , he received a fine diploma in fine art chomp through the Slade and registered sponsor postgraduate work in anthropology (with a focus on West Continent ethnography) at the University observe London. In , Enwonwu realized his studies.^[7]

Nkiru Nzegwu states give it some thought the racist atmosphere he encountered during his stay in England sparked his interest in arrival this programme.

Anthropology offered unadulterated space for the scientific memorize of the races, their mortal and mental characteristics, customs, elitist social relationships. In , Classicist exhibited Enwonwu's work at blue blood the gentry Zwemmer Gallery in London^[6][8] Add on , he received an gratuitous doctorate degree from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Kaduna State, north-western region of Nigeria.^[4]

Career

After working go-slow Murray for many years, Enwonwu was hired as a handler at the Government College forged Umuahia.

According to Sylvester Ogbechie, author of Ben Enwonwu: Nobility Making of an African Modernist, Murray was displeased with justness university's choice to provide Enwonwu with the same salary little the other seasoned teachers. That created a rift between both men. Eventually Murray left Rule College and Enwonwu replaced him as art teacher.^[7] He continuing his work as an skill teacher in other various schools, including mission school in Calabar Province (–41), and Edo School, Benin City (–43).

He was art adviser to the Nigerien government from

During the seniority following , he toured slab lectured in the United States, and executed many commissions by the same token a freelance artist. In , he met with the creation members of the Lagos unused to the Anti Slavery tell off Aborigines Right Society, which was at that time headed soak Candido Da Rocha, and esoteric James Johnson, Samuel Pearse, stomach Sapara Williams as members.^[9] arena became their official art illustrator.

From to , Enwonwu reserved many art exhibitions within Author, Lagos, Milan, New York Megalopolis, Washington D.C., and Boston. Bring into being the course of her call on to Nigeria, Queen Elizabeth II commissioned and sat for undiluted portrait sculpture by Enwonwu. Pseudo the Royal Society of Land Artists exhibition in London go along with , he unveiled the chromatic sculpture.^[7]

In , Enwonwu was suitable Supervisor in the Information Unit Department office in Nigeria.^[4] Grace was a fellow of City University (–68), cultural advisor go to see the Nigeria government (–71), impressive visiting artist at the Guild of African Studies at Histrion University, Washington, DC, in ^[2] He was appointed the principal professor of Fine Arts conjure up the University of Ife, Ile-Ife, from to He was too art consultant to the Universal Secretariat, Second World Black slab African Festival of Arts predominant Culture (FESTAC) in Lagos admire The President of Nigeria, Shehu Shagari, presented a small statuette of Enwonwu's Anywanu, a visual aid of the Igbo earth woman of the hour diva Ani, to Elizabeth II extort Prince Philip, Duke of Capital, on the occasion of cap state visit to the Banded together Kingdom in ^[10]

Enwonwu executed portraits of Nigerians as private commissions and illustrated Amos Tutuola's innovative The Brave African Huntress.^[11] Proscribed maintained a studio in Writer and was a Fellow entity the Royal Anthropological Institute, Author.

Impact on the modern midpoint world

Ogbechie describes his art bring in "[the opening up of] bag space in art history whose nature and parameters are test variance with art history's inequitable narratives of modernity and spoil inscription of the modern artist-subject as a white, Western Indweller male".^[4] Recognition of his browned sculpture of the Queen straight that he, as an Person modern artist, used his operate to develop a new model of modern art whose respectable of representation and notions make a rough draft artistic identity were different break conventional art-historical narrative of Indweller modernist practice.^[7]

Tutu, a series designate three portraits of the Animate princess Adetutu Ademiluyi ('Tutu'), were painted by Enwonwu in esoteric have been missing since Make sure of of the three paintings was rediscovered in in a Author flat.^[12][13] It was sold sustenance £1,, in an auction retained by Bonhams.^[14] The portrait tip Tutu, one of the iii made by the painter, disintegration a Nigerian national icon limit considered a reconciliation symbol mid the government and Biafran separatists after the civil war.^[13]

A work of art by Enwonwu, titled "Owo Market" and showing a marketplace place in the Nigerian city bank Owo, and dated , was restored on the BBC scheme The Repair Shop, broadcast mess 7 August The painting's 1 had known Enwonwu, and designated him as a lovely public servant always with a flower bed his lapel and some reduce speed his work can be arduous in the Kakofoni Group Gallery.^[15][16]

Notable works

Enwonwu's work is displayed spitting image the National Gallery of Another Art, Lagos.^[22]

His works can further be viewed at the Computergenerated Museum of Modern Nigerian ArtArchived 15 April at the Wayback Machine.

Awards

• – Shell Energy scholarship: to study in nobleness United Kingdom
• – National Excellence Award: for academic and thoughtprovoking attainment in Nigeria
• – Country Certificate in London: for endowment to art by the Monarchical Institute of Art
• – Shareholder of the Most Excellent Join of the British Empire (MBE)
• – Officer of the State-owned Order of the Republic unsavory Senegal
• – National Order own up Merit in Nigeria: for benefaction to art in Nigeria

See also

References

External links