Journal of Social andJournal Environmental of Social Sciencesand Environmental (JOSES) 1(1) Sciences June 2019: 1(1), 27-34. June 2019 27
Adap ng Tiv, Fulani and Tamil Mo fs to Forge Inter-ethnic Coexistence through Mixed Media Pain ngs
1Egharevba, S. V., 2Ayi, O. and 3Ajibade, B.
1,2&3 Department of Visual Arts and Technology, Cross River University of Technology, Calabar
Corresponding author: [email protected]
ABSTRACT In today’s Nigeria there are flash-points of violence, as people try to nego ate their own posi- ons. The most murderous is the Fulani herdsmen and farmer conflict in Tiv lands, which has resulted in the killing of thousands of people. This violence is somewhat based on perceived differences between the Fulani and Tiv cultures, which enables the aggressor to slaughter vic- ms so callously. But socie es as seemingly diverse apart as the Fulani and Tiv, are actually more similar than is assumed. This is evident in their cultural mo fs and visual symbols used in both socie es. This paper sought to produce mixed media pain ngs using Tiv, Fulani and Tamil cultural mo fs, combined with social idioms taken from the experiences of Nigeria and Sri Lanka. The mo va on is derived from the need to use art to forge inter-ethnic coexistence and warn the Nigerian society from dri ing to the chao c past of Sri Lanka, from which many have s ll not recovered.
KEYWORDS: Adap ng, Tiv, Fulani, Tamil, mo fs, violence, pain ng.
Introduc on are used decora vely, psychologically and aesthe cal- Cultures are developed in human socie es from the ly, to represent pa erns that may be visual, behaviour- rich blend of experiences gathered over me. These al, and sensory. Since these cultural nuances of mean- experiences have religious, mythical and social dimen- ing-making may be shared, it therefore means that sions that help make meaning of the world and envi- there is a poten al not just for cross-cultural interac- ronment around people. Besides the materiality of the ons and meaning sharing, but more precisely, for inte- environment itself and the stellar system, the immate- gra on as well when effec vely u lised in cultural pro- riality of the broader transcendental world, which in- duc on and consump on. Born in Sri-Lanka, one of the cludes belief systems that unify the a erlife with the authors is Tamil, brought up in Nigeria’s Benue State, here and now, are intricate parts of the meaning creat- while others are Nigerian, born and living in the coun- ed in human socie es. In socie es as seemingly diverse try. All prac ce pain ng, using their own subjec ve, apart as Africa and Asia, Nigeria and Sri Lanka, the cumula ve experiences, including the appropria on of aforemen oned processes of meaning making can be new media and technologies in their art forms. so readily witnessed in the daily life of ci zens, as they While technological advancements are changing nego ate life’s certain es and uncertain es, using the way life is lived today, it is also making new media symbols, verbal and nonverbal sign systems, including and techniques of applica on available to ar sts. For cultural artefacts. Being products of socie es and cul- instance, contemporary ar sts have the advantage of tural experiences, artefacts such as visual arts are prod- today’s technology which produces synthe c materials, ucts of these processes, embellished with inherent mo- as an addi on to natural ones. These new synthe c fs and symbols that convey shared meaning within a media are inexpensive, fast drying, unchanged in dried par cular society, or generalised generic interpreta- value, can adhere to a wider variety of surfaces, and ons understood by mul ple cultures. The tendency, with a permanency unmatched by tradi onal media according to Dorian (1997) is that mo fs and symbols (Jensen 2005). Also, today, there are newspapers, mag- 28 Egharevba, Ayi & Ajibade: Adapting Tiv, Fulani and Tamil Motifs ... azines, posters, handbills on the one hand, and Person- many have s ll not recovered. al Computers (PCs), television and handhelds, on the other, that all func on in communica on processes. Tamil and Tiv Parallels in Violent Experiences While old issues of newspaper are being discarded, The Tamil are an ethnic group from South Asia, with a electronic gadgets end their life circles in trash cans total popula on of about 74 million in the world. Of and unmanaged heaps of waste around the city envi- this number, 63 million live in India, 3.6 million in Sri ronments. In Nigeria (as in many third world econo- Lanka, 1.5million in Malaysia and 250,000 in Singapore mies), poor waste management leading to indiscrimi- (Gordon 2005). Just like Nigeria was, Sri-Lanka was also nate appropria on of space and land for dumping, is a colonized by the Bri sh Empire (Nadarajan 1999). As major contemporary problem in all villages, towns and the south, east, west and north of Nigeria were amal- ci es. gamated into one country in Nigeria, the Bri sh also Another contemporary problem bothering on in- amalgamated Tamil lands, with most of the popula on discriminate appropria on of land in contemporary in Sri-Lanka and others spread in neighbouring coun- Nigeria is the ongoing murders of hundreds of Nigeri- tries, including India (Manogaran 1991). Again, like it ans by so-called Fulani herdsmen, who wish to graze was in Nigeria before the Civil War, there was dissa s- their ca le on lands used as farms by host Tiv commu- fac on among the Tamil in respect of cons tu onal ni es. These murders happen mainly at nights, when rights by the Sri-Lankan government in the 1970s. By vic ms are most vulnerable, and security forces are out the 1980s, the demand culminated in a full scale Civil of hand. As a Tamil, one of the authors has direct expe- War between the Tamil people and the government of rience of the 26 year Sri-Lankan civil war, which ended Sri-Lanka. The ethnic Sinhalese-dominated government in 2009, when the Libera on Tigers of Eelam were de- of Sri-Lanka, hiding under the cloak of the war, em- feated. Till today, the scars of the war have not yet barked on a massive blockade of the northern and healed among the people (Candela and Aldama 2016). eastern Sri-Lanka, homeland of the Tamil, carrying out Seeing the ongoing killings in Nigeria today, the memo- a systema c ethnic cleansing. Over two decades (1983- ries of the Sri Lankan experience makes it expedient to 2008), Sri- Lanka witnessed a bloody civil war that sound a visual ar s c warning using contemporary claimed over 65,000 lives and internally displaced over materials synthesized from the two cultures. This kind a third of the Tamil speaking people. Within this peri- of synthesis is an interac ve communality, which is od, a quarter of all Tamil people migrated to other what Isiguzo (1991) suggests that African cultures sus- parts of the world (Rajesh 2006, Velupillai 2018). In tain today. Therefore, this paper seeks to produce actual fact the Sri-Lankan/Tamil war is why one of this mixed media pain ngs using Tiv, Fulani and Tamil cul- paper’s author migrated and integrated in Nigeria. The tural mo fs, combined with social idioms taken from war officially ended in 2009, but the devasta on the experiences of Nigeria and Sri Lanka. The mo va- caused by the bloodshed is s ll present in the forms of on is derived from the need to use art to forge inter- displacement, insecurity, physical and economic scars, ethnic coexistence and warn the Nigerian society from which o en result in poor mental health (Aruna lake dri ing to the chao c past of Sri Lanka, from which 2001).
Fig. 1: The Map of Sri-Lanka Source: h p://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/asia/lk.htm Journal of Social and Environmental Sciences 1(1), June 2019 29
Fulani are a nomadic people Over the passing years, this fric on has led to severe violence and confronta- ons in which thousands may have lost their lives (The Punch 2017, Gever and Essien 2017). Between Febru- ary 2013 and January 2, 2018 there have been no less than 47 a acks in Tiv communi es (African Herald Ex- press 2018). Unaddressed by successive governments, the conflict has been on for more than 2 decades and there are serious concerns that religion factors in the bloodshed, which is turning out like a war (Adamu and Ben 2017). At once, it becomes clear that the Tamil and the Tiv peoples have violence as a historical commonality. However, while the Tamil violence was mismanaged and escalated into a debilita ng civil war, the Tiv expe- Fig. 2: The Map of Nigeria indica ng Benue State, the major rience is s ll ongoing and salvageable, if authori es will site of bloodle ng do the right thing and social actors will exercise re- straints. Inasmuch as the murders are happening on Tiv soil, the faceless Fulani herdsmen are the aggressors. To prevent an escala on into war, there is a dire need to forge inter-ethnic coexistence to prevent a total Of Nigeria’s many ethnic groups, the Tiv are about 7 breakdown of order, and spill-over into other parts of million in Nigeria (and a few in Cameroon). In Nigeria, Nigeria. While poli cs has its role in direc ng na on the Tiv language is spoken by people in Benue, Taraba building, the media and the arts also have agenda- and Nasarawa States, that is, the north central Nigeria se ng func ons in society. This study, as part of the (Tiv People 2018, Weor 2005). However, the geograph- discourse for social change and agenda se ng in Nige- ical loca on of the Tiv has tended to place them in di- ria, is contribu ng to the na onal ques on by using rect confronta on with the nomadic Fulani, who herd mo fs and social materials from Tamil, Tiv and Fulani ca le through the region. The Fulani are a nomadic, cultures to make mixed-media pain ngs to address the pastoral people whose grazing prac ces are a problem rising violence between herdsmen and farmers in Tiv to (Ibrahim 1966). Numbering about 50 million, they land. migrated from North Africa to Futa Jalon in large num- bers in the 1600s, from where they had their first Jihad Materials and Methods and spread to other parts of Africa, including Nigeria. In It is important to note that ar sts have produced Nigeria they were herdsmen living in communi es, works that combine mul cultural materials. One such where Fulani leaders were installed in most of the Hau- ar st is Ponniah Visagapperumal, a Sri-Lankan who sa City states. Katsina and Kano had the largest concen- migrated to Nigeria and prac ced his art. His The Last tra on of Fulani (Fani-Kayode 2018). Uthman Dan Night (2009), inspired by Leonardo da Vinci and Michel- Fodio’s Jihad pushed southward, it replaced the Hausa angelo Buonarro , is an expression of a cultural synthe- kings in most of northern Nigeria with Fulani aristocrats sis in which the ar st is influenced by different cultures within a feudal system that tended to subjugate indige- and techniques. Modern African art also explores the nous peoples. It is this historical Fulani antecedent of adop on of eclec cism (Drewal 1984). In terms of mo- subjuga ng socie es by first coming as ca le herders fs, Tiv art almost en rely uses natural elements like and integra ng with the communi es that make Nige- lizards, swallows, drinking gourds and calabash as body rian people resistant to the idea of herdsmen in their scarifica on markings that have serious cultural signifi- lands. As Fani-Kayode puts it, herdsmen are the foot cance and are used in design and pain ng styles. In Tiv soldiers of the Fulani Empire. To the people of south- art, angles represent the forces of individuality, mascu- ern Nigeria, today’s events where supposed herdsmen linity and discon nuity modes of being and becoming, sack and slaughter whole villages to graze their ca le in which are poten ally evil. It is the fric on and tension Tiv land bears an uncanny resemblance to the method between the circles and angles that generate energy, used to pillage and own northern territorie, in the dynamics and life (Keil 1979, Okogwu 2008). Tamil art a ermaths of Dan-Fodio’s Jihad. is inseparable from religion, revolving around Hindu- The Tiv being predominantly farmers, Fulani ca le ism, using elements and basic shapes to represent uni- o en graze on farms, reducing harvests and resul ng in versal, humanis c themes (Coomaraswamy 1987, Na- severely dwindled incomes and food supply. This has tarajan 1999, Ascher 2002, Sukkran 2011). Mo fs were resulted in several conflicts between Tiv farming com- also got from the calabash, which is the most prolific muni es and Fulani herdsmen (The Punch 2018). The Fulani art form (Werness 2000) Tamil, Tiv and Fulani 30 Egharevba, Ayi & Ajibade: Adapting Tiv, Fulani and Tamil Motifs ... cultural mo fs and symbols were isolated, sketched, shown in Table 1. In the end, the pain ngs produced tabulated (See Table 1) and used in producing mixed were mixed media pain ngs that are a synthesis of media pain ngs. Besides the cultural mo fs, the mate- ideas, techniques, themes and pictorial elements from rials used in this study include acrylic paint, transparent Sri-Lankan and Nigerian cultures. Perspex [Poly(methyl methacrylate)], formica, ply- wood, ropes, paper, sand-paper, glue, reflec ve pa- Results and Discussion pers, quilling papers, beads, bu ons and calabashes. Inspired by the imborivungu pipe, A Search for Fer lity Since perspex is not available in all colours in Nige- (Fig. 3) was executed on a ver cal canvas. As with all ria, transparent sheets were painted in the desired peoples, fer lity – of the land, livestock and humans – colours, cut to shapes and the edges were smoothened is an important aspect of Tiv, Fulani and Tamil socie- with sandpaper. The surface of the calabashes and pots es. The imborivungu is an important Tiv fer lity object were treated with white glue and emulsion paint to used in performing rites. Fer lity lies at the very centre enable them take colour. Glue was then used to assem- of Tiv life, which plays out in Benue State being called ble the various cut-out pieces of materials according to the “food basket of the na on”. In Tamil society, fer li- sketches dealing with violence and peaceful coexist- ty also plays an important role as well, though not in ence. The designs and cut-outs, including embellish- the same fervour. In a generalized sense, circles sug- ments detail Tiv, Fulani and Tamil pictorial elements gest womanhood as a source of con nuity of the hu-
Table 1: Some Tiv, Fulani and Tamil Mo fs used in the Study TIV FULANI TAMIL
Hwange: parallel lines scratched at the neck of Bilva : The bael tree, fruit, Spherical intertwined motifs pottery. flowers and leaves
Kiav I Civin dots and holes artefacts Intertwined motifs Chandra-Surya : Sun-moon
Hyulugh : spirals Calabash Design Chakra : "wheel", the circle of time
Dharma: wheel with eight spokes, Facial marks Facial marks representing enlightenment.
Journal of Social and Environmental Sciences 1(1), June 2019 31 man life (Gbaden 1999), and all its sensuous and ero c extensions are inherent in a woman’s curvy body. In the Tiv cosmos, the circle (Igbiri ) represents the sun ‘oo’, the con nuity of life. The circle is also the basic shape of the Fulani calabash. It is used by women for milking and selling dairy products. And, just as the cala- bash is used to contain food and other vital materials, the sun is also a sort of natural calabash that contains energy, which supplies all the earth with light and heat. On the blue sec ons in the pain ng are lines crisscross- ing in orders similar to the lines on the calabash and intertwined mo fs of the Fulani, and the hwange of the Tiv. However, the Fulani lines crisscrossing the blue sec ons in the background are in no par cular order, which represents the unplanned and hazardous ways ca le is herded on Tiv lands. To the top le and bo om right of the pain ng, there are two human figures. The one on the le is slimmer and much taller than the shorter one at the lower side. The slim figure repre- sents the Fulani herders, who are usually slim and tall. The shorter figure, rendered in red represents the Tiv who are losing their lands, farms and lives to the con- flict. Again, we find the lines in the Fulani calabash dec- ora ng the backgrounds in that area. This underlay of mo fs suggest that there are Fulani ac vi es around the area, which are inimical to peace and the survival of the landowners. Similar to the Tiv world view, the circle in Tamil tradi on represents a con nuity of life, the sun-moon. Using these parallels in the Tiv and Tam- il cultures, the pain ng speaks volumes about seeking Fig. 3: A Search for Fer lity (2010) “fer lity” out of the “infer lity” of violence currently Mixed media with Perspex ropes and acrylics being seen in Tiv land. The sun is strategically placed at Size: 87cm x 124cm the centre to illuminate the minds of social actors and make them rethink their own roles in the conflict. In general, the pain ng calls a en on to the need to plan and enforce global best prac ces in ca le husbandry. Seasons of Fer lity (Fig 4) describes seasons of the year when Tamil and Tiv people travel back to their communi es to par cipate in celebra ons. It is usually a period of family re-union that children, adults and old people of the communi es look forward to. This pain ng represents the climax in one such fes val. The different shades of red and yellow, and their nuances, were used to represent the energy and joy people ex- perience at such celebra ons. This pain ng has a domi- nance of reds, with a sprinkle of yellow and blue, cre- a ng a colour harmony that is warm. Acrylic colours, which gave brilliancy and transparency to the pictorial mo fs, were used. The red superstructure of the pain ng’s visual represents violence and unfriendly ac vi es. In the background of the red there are sever- al linear designs drawn from the Fulani mo fs in Table 1. In actual fact, it almost seems as if the spherical in- tertwined mo f of the Fulani (in Table 1) is reproduced in the red background of the pain ng’s top right side. Fig. 4: Seasons of Fes vity (2010) Furthermore, the whole of the pain ng is embellished Mixed media with Perspex, with the facial marks and designs common to both the Size: 83cm x 98cm 32 Egharevba, Ayi & Ajibade: Adapting Tiv, Fulani and Tamil Motifs ...
Fulani and Tiv (Kiav dots) peoples, and also has a simi- larity to Tamil Rangoli designs. The major characteris- cs of the pain ng come with the deliberate use of the white ropes in zigzag and organic movements to repre- sent grazing routes tradi onally traversed by the herds- men. The circles and dots, which are prominent fea- tures of Tamil, Fulani and Tiv cultures, were employed here to represent the ca le, as they are herded along, bringing destruc on to anything green planted on the way. The line-up of different sizes of circles in the mid- dle of the pain ng add to the diagonal movement with- in the visual field, and further highlights the fact that spaces could be secluded as ranches for ca le to be raised, without destroying the livelihoods of Tiv farm- ing communi es. My Treasure, My Passion (Fig 5) is an acrylic mixed media pain ng in yellow, ochre, sienna and umber. It illustrates the passion with which both Tiv and Fulani herdsmen further their economic ac vi es. The Fulani, on the one hand are very passionate about their ca le and will protect the animals with everything they have. On the other hand also, the Tiv are no less passionate
Fig. 6: Cross -Culture () Mixed- media with perspex Size: 83cm x 98cm
about their own farmlands and agricultural produce. In the pain ng, one sees a stern-looking individual tower- ing above all else, subjuga ng everything. In the brown background to his right are a rich profusion of Fulani intertwined designs. On his body are Tiv hwange run- ning through and texturing it. There are dots almost forming a hallo around the figure. These dots are simi- lar to the ones common to Tamil, Tiv and Fulani mo fs seen in Table 1. Around the le half of the figure’s head are Tamil bilva pa erns, supported by dots. There is a thick wavy line weaving from the back- ground, top-right, over the individual’s head and back to the bo om of the background again. This dense black line signifies the mortal connec on between the farmers, herders and the environment. It also indicates the interconnectedness between all people and the environment. In that sense, everyone is equal, every- one’s life is connected to another because, as the pain ng shows, we share common pa erns that run through the background of the pain ng and our lives also. Cross -Culture (Fig 6) is a mixed media pain ng using pictorial mo fs of Tamil, Tiv and Fulani origin. Again, the sun “oo man iyo” of the Tiv and “suriyan” among the Tamil forms the centre of a rac on in this Fig. 5: My Treasure, My Passion (2011) pain ng. The sun dial at the centre le dominates the Mixed media with calabash pain ng while, behind it, we see a thick column of dark Size: 53cm x124cm, Journal of Social and Environmental Sciences 1(1), June 2019 33 colour, represen ng black smoke going skywards. But ests and grass lands. Today, however, virtually all land this smoke is one that oozes out of crises and war, rep- is owned and there are no more fallow lands to be ap- resented by the darkness under the sun, at the bo om propriated for open grazing. The former ca le routes le side of the pain ng. Extending from the top-right to of old can no longer exist because mes have changed bo om-right of the pain ng, there is a column with 5 and development has overtaken open grazing. In to- equal sized circles. Each circle represents both the Fula- day’s world, ranching is the prac ce and no society ni calabash and intertwined mo fs. The 5 calabashes allows open grazing, for obvious reasons. In ranches, are neatly packed together, leaving space for other the space is fenced, the animals stay within and veteri- visual mo fs in the pain ng. The neat parking of these nary services are provided, as well as food and water. circles represents the fact that it is possible for the Fu- With this, the ca le are no longer problems to the soci- lani herdsmen to herd and move their ca le without ety and clashes are avoided between grazers and land- disturbing the Tiv and their farmland. In other words, owners. as the 5 circles have been well managed within the However, the most vital challenge so far is not the space, it is also possible for the Fulani herdsmen to Tiv or the Fulani. It is government keeping silent and manage their herding without displacing the Tiv. There not being decisive in the context of the many killings. are indis nct figures hidden in the darkness under the Rather than call it “murder”, government insists on sun. These figures represent those in society that spon- calling it “herdsmen-farmer conflict” – a term that sor and benefit from crises and bloodshed. At the hori- downplays the genocidal propor on of events. But this zontal middle of that darkness, one finds ver cal method merely makes everything worse and, soon pa erns of red, which represent the wounded, maimed enough, all hell will break lose and full scale war will be and slain vic ms of the crises. Surrounding the sun is a unavoidable. This was the scenario in Sri-Lanka before circle of red, which suggests our common humanity. the war, when authori es took issues lightly, un l it And, the black dots spread evenly within the red circle exploded. In order for Nigeria not to witness an explo- are all peoples, whose des nies are con guous in the sion into warfare, it is important for all par es to take circle of life. The rays of the sun are also outlined by responsibility and perform their roles. Just as the Fulani the dots common to all three cultures. This is most herdsmen are able to appropriate the culture and sym- symbolic. For, it is the same sun that gives us energy bols of their host communi es, they need urgently ap- without minding where we are from. Thus, all human propriate the contemporary method of ranching. Gov- ac vi es are not only similar but con guous in every ernment needs to enforce this, as the only viable op- society. That being the case, it is vital that we treat on. For this, loans need be available for people in the others with respect and regard for peaceful coexist- ca le business and lands need be acquired (rented, ence at all mes. leased or bought) and facili es like fences, water and feed supply. Ranching will also open up business op- Conclusion portuni es for veterinary doctors and feed farmers/ From the pain ngs themselves, and the discussions of producers to supply the ranches. Owing to the endless the social and underlying cultural mo fs crea on, it is bloodshed on the one hand, and the global ranching clear that the Tamil, Tiv and Fulani have much in com- ideal on the other, there are no doubts at all about mon. In that sense, Adepegba (1986) men ons that what Nigeria needs to do to arrest the situa on. At this the Fulani are not just i nerant, but that they appropri- point, stakeholders need to remember that, while their ate symbols and cultural elements of their host com- cultures may seem to be different, there are evident muni es. It may well be that many of the similari es uni es beneath the superficial layer of difference. From visible in both cultures may have been picked along the the pain ngs and the analyses of cultural mo fs, the way by the i nerant Fulani. Whichever the case, it is complexity and connec vity of Tiv and Fulani cultures is important to realise that each culture needs to live and glaring enough as to make them one large people. let the other live also. For, the differences we perceive There is simply no reason for ethnic animosity because in human socie es are more superficial that real. There we share more that we think, and, we are be er as a is no doubt at all that the Fulani herdsmen need to united people. Inter-ethnic coexistence is vital now, herd their ca le. But the Tiv farmers also need to farm more than ever before, to prevent Nigeria from dri ing their produce. In the end neither the Fulani ca le nor to the chao c past of Sri Lanka, from which millions the Tiv farm produce is more important than the other. have s ll not recovered. They are both important and very complementary to themselves. Another main issue of concern in the pain ngs is that it is not a sustainable model for the herdsmen to insist on grazing their ca le on Tiv lands and farms. The grazing style of animal husbandry may have worked in precolonial and colonial mes, when popula on was low and there was a lot of fallow for- 34 Egharevba, Ayi & Ajibade: Adapting Tiv, Fulani and Tamil Motifs ...
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