Exploring The Tourism Potential of the Odun Oba Festival Using Printmaking (Published)
The Odun Oba festival is a major cultural celebration in Ondo, Nigeria, which annually serves to showcase the rich cultural heritage and traditions of the Ondo people. This study examines the festival’s socio-cultural viability as it relates to improving the kingdom’s tourism potential. This study deployed printmaking as a medium to capture and depict the Odun Oba festival, using printmaking’s diverse techniques and expressive capabilities to provide a distinctive platform to document the multifaceted nature of the Odun Oba Festival. The researcher has also tried to portray the lively attires, intricate and dynamic dance performances that are integral components of the festival through relief, intaglio and planographic print media respectively. The finished prints were exhibited physically and virtually, after which a survey (using Google form) was conducted to evaluate public perception of the works. The researcher recommends that the prints be displayed in galleries, cultural hubs, and public arenas, allowing people of diverse backgrounds access to connect with the festival’s cultural legacy. It further suggests that the socio-cultural presentation of the Odun Oba Festival through the printmaking medium would not only encourage the flow of artistic expression but also act as a vehicle for preserving and passing down knowledge of the kingdom’s cultural heritage. Thus, promoting intergenerational discussions, and the nurturing of indigenous cultural identity and pride.
Keywords: Culture, Odun Oba., exposition, festival, printmaking
Of print and scholarship: deconstructing the literature on printmaking in contemporary Nigerian art (Published)
Printmaking has long been in use, especially among indigenous art practitioners in Nigeria, it is also very popular among contemporary Nigerian artists who use it as a medium of aesthetic expression. The foundation for scholarship on printmaking was laid by notable scholars; however, writing from their cultural context, a sizable number of these scholars follow the perspectives that confined contemporary printmaking to the Western world and Asian countries. Considering the prolific production of printmaking in Nigeria, this study deconstructs the literature to understand the state of scholarship on printmaking, especially in contemporary Nigerian art. Data collected from published journal articles, books, exhibition catalogues, and Internet sources were subjected to critical analysis. The study concludes that printmaking in Nigeria is so unique that it would continue to attract the attention of art enthusiasts around the globe; hence, it deserves more attention from African art historical scholars.
Citation: Eyitayo Tolulope Ijisakin (2022) Of print and scholarship: deconstructing the literature on printmaking in contemporary Nigerian art, Global Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Vol.10, No.9, pp.44-59
Keywords: Bruce Onobrakpeya, Engraving, Intaglio, Literature, Nigerian art, print, printmaking