Sulpture, painting, pottery, rock art, textiles, masks, home decor, and jewellery are all examples of African art, which refers to the visual arts of native Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa. Thousands of years have passed since the beginning of Nigeria’s artistic culture. The intensity of Nigerian living is reflected in the art and culture of the country, which also draws on an illustrious past. Southwest Nigeria is largely inhabited by the Yoruba ethnic group. Their artistic traditions are incredibly old.
While this is going on, women all over the world are producing important, diverse work that completely refutes the need for the term “women artists,” but many still earn much less than their male counterparts. The low participation rates of female artists in comparison to male artists in organized, professional shows serve to highlight the gender gap in Nigerian art. Women have been underrepresented in Nigeria’s visual arts industry. In Nigeria, the ratio of male to female artists is really skewed in their favour.
Nigerian women, however, have revolutionized the art world by creating amazing and outstanding pieces of art. Younger artists have found inspiration in these works, which have also received widespread acclaim. A new path has been opened up for Nigerian women in the arts, thanks to the efforts of Ladi Kwali, Susanne Wenger (Adunni Olorisha of Osun), Chief Nike Davies Okundaye (Mama Nike), Ben Enwonwu (MBE, NNOM), and others.
In Lagos, a full-time studio artist, Bello Adedoyin Adelani art speaks about what she’s been through and what she’s striving to be. As a woman artist, setting aside time for your work is essential for your development, artistic growth, and work output, but you can do this after work hours, in the mornings while your kids are at school, or as your main focus on the weekends.
So how does she do this as a professional artist? “I began my art career as a full time studio artist, but later put up for part time teaching as an art teacher. Art really helps me in all areas of life because it is one thing that makes me happy each time I create an artwork and it’s a source of income for me,” Adedoyin told Susa Africa.
“I have taken part in both local and international art competition and I won prizes in both and I have participated in many exhibitions both locally and internationally too.” She has won two significant prizes in both worldwide (miniature art competition, India) and local art competitions (Best art month completion by Best Liquor).
Women artworks impact social issues in Nigeria. “As a portrait artist, I use my art to express human’s (especially female) expressions, what I mean by that is that in our day to day activities we meet different people and each one has different expression they carries around, some sad, some happy, some goofy some expressionless this happens because of the situation each one of them are and also because of the way the society treats women or the situation of the country. Therefore, my artworks serves as an advocate for women and girl child in the society at large, and this depends on the title I give each artwork,” she said.
The low success rate of women in the industry includes the cultural expectations of women, which cause female artists to promote themselves less aggressively, resulting in less representation, less overall exposure less likelihood of entering “the canon” or winning prestigious prizes, and all the other markers that determine art-world success. Getting a prospective client in a male dominated art industry in Nigeria can be a challenge. Adedoyin said, “I give potential clients a sense of what I do, by posting my works on my social media’s and also I put in for exhibitions.”
In her words, “establishing connection with other artist is actually crucial as a female artist because of the stereotype that females are weak and can’t really create art the same way the male artist do. Therefore, I work with my fellow female and my favourite coworker is Omovo Odupitan Ayoola. For a woman to work as a professional artist in Nigeria is very difficult, especially when you are married and have children. You find it hard to leave your family to go to a workshop or residency and sometime it’s hard to complete a project too.”
As for establishing relations with agents, galleries; “building relationships with galleries is somehow difficult in the sense that the work you think is the best may not appeal to the gallery owner and vice versa, therefore I make sure I put in for exhibitions in order to be notified by the gallery owner by so doing they will be the one looking for my work.”
Nigeria has long had a stunning and distinctive art scene. Some artists stand out due to their distinctive skill, while others do so due to the contribution they have made to the industry’s support, growth, and reinvention. With more young women embracing art with enthusiasm and talent, it might become the country’s next major export.
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