Meet The New GFA President…

The Guild of Professional Fine Artists of Nigeria, known as (GFA), a non-governmental, non-political, non-profit making, professional organization whose primary aim is to improve the profession and status and wellbeing of all professional Fine Artists, yesterday, Sunday, January 16, elected George Edozie as their new president. 

FONDCUP TO UNVEIL THE FACE OF NIGER-DELTA

                    

Mrs Elizabeth Era, the convener of Face of Niger-Delta Cultural Pageant (FONDCUP), on Friday, announced that the maiden edition of the pageant will hold on the 25th of June in Delta State.

Era who disclosed this during a media briefing in Lagos said that the cultural pageantry aims at showcasing the rich cultural heritage of the Niger-Delta people, and as well change the negative impression people have about the region.

According to Era, registration is ongoing and will close on March 15, 2021, while contestants from the nine Niger-Delta States will be selected through audition. Themed: Embracing our Peace, Beauty and Culture.

She revealed that the contestants will be camped for 22 days and will be examined and preoccupied based on the Niger-Delta culture and various cultural programmes. And the winner will go home with a new car, N1 million, and awarded the Kindness Ambassador, which will last for one year with a series of ambassadorial jobs.

In her words: “The first runner-up will be leaving with the sum of N1 million, empowered with a skill of her choice, and will get to work with HUSSTORM Technologies. While the second runner-up will be getting N500,000 with other opportunities.” Adding that each of the contestants will also go home N200,000.

Era said that the new face of FONDCUP will take up the task of visiting the Niger-Delta States, sensitising them on the need to embrace the culture of peace and show kindness to others as Niger-Delta indigenes who were known for militancy, kidnapping and conflicts, also have their unique cultural heritage, and other potential Nigerians needed to be aware of and explore. 

 

Also at the press briefing was Mrs Evelyn Okere-Onu, a Nigerian Politician, who commended the initiative, saying the programme is coming at the right time with so many cases of insecurity in Nigeria.

Okere-Onu urged the coordinators of FONDCUP to also organize programmes that would encourage tourists to visit the Niger-Delta region.

“I support this pageant whole-heartedly, and I urge every individual to imbibe the spirit of peace and kindness. The Niger-Delta people are amazing people, and I believe so much in cultural exchange programmes whereby we learn other people’s culture to bring about peace and understanding,” she said.

The Secretary-General, The World Kindness Movement, Mr Stephen Oke, said the organisation had supported the cultural pageantry because they believed in the objective to re-orientate the mind-set of the Niger-Delta people.

“We appreciate the initiative, and we will ensure this becomes a success,” he said.

Mr Idris Saibu, the Content Creator of the event, said the slogan of the cultural pageantry is “Embracing our Peace, Beauty and Culture”.

Saibu said these attributes of African women are the major ones to be examined in every contestant.

“This is trying to promote morality and not the usual half-naked runway parade, but we will be focusing on upholding decency as Africans,” he said.

The pageantry is being organised in collaboration with The World Kindness Movement. 

A THOUGHT-PROVOKING NOVEL

Title: Left With Shadows

Author: Udemma Chukwuma

Pages: 139

Chapters: 16

Publisher: Topseal Communication Ltd

ISBN- 978-978-972-720-9

Year of Publication: 2020

Reviewer: Dr Raphael James

This is a thought-provoking novel that addresses the implications of divorce as children, whose parents are separated, often suffer psychological and emotional trauma. This book project the many dangers such as depression, hopelessness, loneliness, lack of sense of belonging, hatred, suicidal thoughts which are very common with children from a broken home. 

The only source of livelihood burning down to ash is as bad as it can get after all the other things Nwakaego has put up with. The book captures the expressions of each character and helps in making them come alive, to feel what they feel. It also captures part of our culture, village life.

The pain of a child having been put in a situation that forced her to learn fast and hard. Nwakaego (the child is superior to Money) the main character was a very withdrawn child and had no one to talk to when push became shove, she made a bad and harmful decision because she didn’t know better, she was too trusting to a fault, she craved the love of a mother and father at a point she wanted someone… anyone who will love her or just accept her, and her feeling unwanted and unloved was what lead her to make harmful choices to become suicidal but before all this, she was once a happy child or at least her situation wasn’t as bad as it was after her relocating to Eko, Nwakaego learnt the hard way that all that glitters isn’t gold. This book captures the journey of a young girl who just wanted to go to school.

The sad truth here is that ‘Left with shadows’ is not just a story, it is an everyday reality, it happens to children. A child once bright and bubbling with dreams in the village decides to move to the city with the wrong person or generally living with the wrong adult, their dreams die and it crushes them. 

On two occasions Nwakaego attempted suicide, after her uncle Ojo, the man she called daddy, the man who was married to her guardian, Aunty Ndubunma had violated her. She had several sleepless nights out of fear that uncle Ojo may sneak in the dark and have his ways again on her. 

Perhaps what was more painful for Nwakaego was that she could have lived her dream in the village but she saw another opportunity that she considered better and trusted, and when she was so close to feeling her victory it was snatched from her. Life was cruel for her and nobody loved her, so she believed till she went to a new place with new hope and never looking back.

The book is beautifully scripted and the narration is more like seeing a movie, the book ended with a glossary of the non-English words and the meaning as used in the book. 

Udemma Chukwuma is a journalist, author and blogger. Her mother is a Cameroonian, and her father is a Nigerian. Left with Shadows is her debut novel. She is currently writing her second novel. She lives and works in Lagos, Nigeria.

PROFILE: Anje

Boris Anje Tabufor (b.1993), discovered art since his earliest days. He received his first drawing lessons from his cousin (and artist) Samuel Njomke. His work focuses on the notion of negative dependence. 

“My artwork is highlighting our link to negative dependence. A force which creates a virtual link between two random items. Creating a balance fulfilling his imagination, this is how humans are becoming their own odalisque. I want my artworks to be a mirror used for an internal process of introspection.”

Anje composes black silhouettes animated with logotypes that reflect what he defines as the social and material conventions enslaving men. Lettering and logos that also refer to the marks left on the body by the disease. Consumerism, superficiality sound like a denunciation of the conditions of production of an entertainment society.
He lives and works in Douala, Cameroon. 

Afeez Adetunji shows Unbreakable in Lagos

Afeez Adetunji is set to exhibit 28 recent works in his second solo show on Saturday, November 16, at Alexis Galleries, 282 Akin Olugbade Street, Off Idowu Martins, Victoria Island, Lagos. 

Adetunji revealed this at a press session today at the gallery in Lagos. The exhibition titled Unbreakable, according to him, was inspired by his environment. The theme also reflects the beauty of his environment with a stunning impression of Ibadan rooftops in his paintings is symbolical. The works evoke strong feelings and also question the current reality in contemporary time.