Unsung Moment at National Museum of Unity, Enugu

Mr. Tochukwu Ike
February 5, 2024

Abstract

May 18, 2023 saw the unveiling of Unity Code Art Exhibition at National Museum of Unity, Enugu; an exhibition that saw the convergence of 24 museum Artists from different stations, ethnic and religious groups in Nigeria under the aegis of National Museum Resident Artists (NMRA) with the sole purpose of using Art to promote unity and understanding among Nigerians. The event, coming shortly after the 2023 general election in Nigeria where some politicians deployed divisive tactics to win votes, saw 24 ordinary people use extra ordinary artistic expressions to enhance national integration. Understandably not every moment that shaped history gets the deserved credit, but this indelible moment went by largely unnoticed. This paper seek to highlight some of the strategies adopted and ideas behind this ongoing exhibition.

Introduction

Museum in Nigeria has a long history of deploying art as a tool to promote understanding and peaceful coexistence. The traveling Art Exhibition tagged, “Two thousand years of Nigerian art” which started from April 27^th to June 26^th 1982 readily comes to mind. The exhibition started from San Francisco to California and moved to 17 other countries of the world. That effort, to a large extent dispelled the Hamitic hypothesis which was popular in the Western world at the time. Hamitic hypothesis projected the idea that anything of value that came to Africa, came through colonialism.

Secondly, the public display (in Unity Museums) of Art works produced by Artists of the past from different ethnic groups, in Nigeria juxtaposed to highlight relationships and similarities among Nigerians before the advent of Europeans and the Arabs are few examples. In line with the above, 24 Museum Artists from different ethnic/religious background decided to come together immediately after the 2023 general elections in Nigeria to similarly use Art to enhance national unity. This is to dispel seeds of discord generated by politicians during the campaign.

Participating Artists

S/NO.	Name	Gender	Geo-Political Zone	State
1	Mairo Meliga	Female	North-East	Borno
2	Iniobong John Udo	Male	South-South	Akwa-Ibom
3	Queen Dasaba	Female	North-West	Kaduna
4	Yinka Olajubu	Male	FCT	FCT
5	Echem Ogbonnaya	Male	South-East	Ebonyi
6	Abdurrashid Ahmad	Male	North-West	Jigawa
7	Oshoike Johnson	Male	South-South	Edo
8	Chamberlain Amadi Nwosu	Male	South-East	Imo
9	Aderounmu Akanbi	Male	South-West	Oyo
10	Salawu Adeiza	Male	North-Central	Kogi
11	Eziokwu, Robinson	Male	South-East	Enugu
12	Obi Joseph	Male	FCT	FCT
13	Otikpa, Cordelia	Female	South-East	Anambra
14	Oyinloye Babatunde	Male	North-Central	Kwara
15	Zeniath Oruamen	Female	South-South	Edo
16	Ugorji Ikechukwu	Male	South-South	Enugu
17	Uche Idika Kalu	Male	South-South	Delta
18	Ishola Chinedu Ozueigbo	Male	South-East	Abia
19	Adeleye Olusegun	Male	South-West	Ogun
20	Chigor Obi	Female	South-East	Anambra
21	Ogungbile Oyetunde	Male	South-West	Oyo
22	Mohammed Dau Isa	Male	North-West	Kano
23	Okananwa N. C	Female	North-Central	Plateau
24	Tochukwu Ike	Male	South-East	Enugu

Conscious effort was made to follow the United Nations and the national Gender Policy which formulated a 35% affirmative action on gender inclusion.

SOME STRATEGY ADOPTED BY NMRT (Clothing as Symbol of Unity)

NMRA played on the idea that dressing in Nigeria functions as a silent communication system that connects people. Knowing that Nigeria is made up of more than 250 ethnic groups and each group can easily be identified through their language, facial marks, the way they dress etc. According to (Ike, 2023) clothing tells a lot about a person’s background and identity. Clothing is an important aspect of our culture. The way we dress reflects not just the way we see ourselves but the way others see us.

Story was told of a Ghanaian who travelled to New York for a conference and in a crowed hall he noticed a stranger dressed in kente attire. Impulsively he felt a sense of brotherhood towards the stranger. Social psychologists believe that we inadvertently feel a sense of oneness with anyone who dress aligns with our culture. Subconsciously we see that person as one of our own. NMRA made portraits of prominent Nigerians dressed in costumes of other ethnic groups other than theirs.

Concept of Juxtaposition in Art

A first time visitor to any Unity Museum in Nigeria will noticed that objects from different ethnic groups are juxtaposed. A close observation of objects so juxtaposed, often reveals how interconnected we all are. In visual Arts, “juxtaposition is used to highlight the relationship between two or more elements. The final composition helps the audience to see the composition as one thing instead of two separate entities, thereby influencing the perception and opinion of the audience” (Ike, 2023). Similarly, NMRA deployed this same strategy in Unity Code Art exhibition in effort to promote national unity.

Conclusion

At a time like this when politicians fire the ember of disunity, Museum as an institution should counter this by promoting peace and unity through Art. It is recommended that this effort by NMRA should be replicated in all the museums nationwide.