By Obinna Okerekeocha
Art and how it is showcased today has indeed come of age. This was made evident at an exhibition recently held at the Re.le Gallery, a contemporary hub for pure artistic expression, in Onikan Lagos. It was a duo show of breath-taking drawing genius – Soji Adesina and Uthman Wahaab.
The body of work deconstructed the concept of how drawings interact with the gallery space. The drawings were rendered to exceed the boundaries of drawing surfaces, (paper & canvass) traveling onto the walls of the gallery and into digital spaces – Samsung tablet devices.
This innovative exhibition will be the very first time that interactions between both spaces would happen on such a large scale. Synergy already exists in other parts of the world with museums from New York to Venice engaging art work with tech devices. Now, Nigeria is catching up to the trend, thanks to Samsung and Re.le Gallery.
Samsung, with its devices and Rele Gallery, in the art it showcases, are both committed to creative disruptions, initiatives and projects that engage people, change the way we see, think – and this collaboration is one of such. A collaboration showcasing the boundless possibilities that exist when the paths of technology and art cross.
Alongside this exhibition was an art creation contest that was thrown open to artists all across Nigeria. The essence was for the individual artists to interpret their own understanding of the theme ‘Interactions: Crossing lines’. Very interesting submissions were made. The submissions cut across drawing, illustration, photography, digital painting and video.
According to a director of Samsung present at the award ceremony, it was really great to see just how creative Nigeria artists are and that fact that the works on display could indeed be exhibited anywhere in the world.
Yours truly was a participant in the contest. I decided to come up with something a little bit different. I created a video called ‘Mind Space’, teaming up with a colleague of mine who’s not afraid to latch on creative challenges, the tireless & savvy Tope Adubi. I put it in not knowing how it would be received. The D-day came and my video was best in that category and I was 3rd overall in the competition. At least some compensation for my troubles.
There’s going to be more treats of art coming from my buffet of diverse art specials.
Watch this creative space!
