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GASPACT JOURNAL of ARTS and TECHNOLOGY Vol. 1 No. 4

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GASPACT JOURNAL of ARTS and TECHNOLOGY Vol. 1 No. 4 THE RELEVANCE, SIGNIFICANCE AND ABUSE OF OUTDOOR SCULPTURES IN LAGOS, NIGERIA Sunday James, Ph.D Department of Creative Arts and Tourism, Email: [email protected], Faculty of Humanities, Management and Social Sciences, Kwara State University, Sheriff Ojetunde Malete-Ilorin, Nigeria. Email: [email protected] [email protected] +2348034095246 Abstract Art Education goes beyond the teaching and learning of Art as a subject within the four walls of the classroom. Its scope includes the study of outdoor events, monumental objects, museums and educational visits, among others. This is the thrust of this paper. The paper examines the issue of outdoor sculptures in Lagos, Nigeria with a view to discuss their relevance to the host community. The objectives of the study is to discuss the significance and relevance of outdoor sculptures in Lagos, state few reasons for siting them at various locations, as well as discuss a few ways in which these sculptures are abused. Photographs of major figures are included in the paper to draw readers' attention to situation as regards production, sitting and maintenance of these sculptures. Methodology adopted in the study includes personal visits, exploration, literature review and observation of political trends in the city of Lagos. The major findings of the study is that outdoor sculptures in Lagos reflect the philosophy, lifestyle, occupation, belief system of the people of Lagos as well as serving as means of adornment as reflected in the series of new sculptures commissioned by the administration of Governor Akinwumi Ambode between 2015 and 2019. Other findings are also listed in the paper. It is hoped that the findings of this study will be useful to art historians, National Commission for Museums and Monuments and relevant stakeholders in the field of Art. It is the view of the author that outdoor sculptures are of great importance to development of cities in spite of the environmental hazards they may cause if not properly maintained. Key words: Outdoor sculptures, categorization, relief, form in the round, armature Introduction The role of artistic objects in urban development cannot be overemphasized. This is because adornment and monumental objects play major role in enhancing the physical outlook of major cities around the world. Chapman quoted in Awogbade (2012) listed three major aims of Art Education as; to encourage personal fulfillment by helping children to respond to their immediate world and express its significance to them in visual forms; learn that which is related to cultural endeavours of the past and present through studies of the artistic heritage; and begin to appreciate art as a way of encountering life by studying the role of Art in society. This paper attempts to look at the situation of selected sculptural figures in Lagos as a way to educate the would-be-readers on the role artistic objects play in city development. Across ages, monuments and memorials have been present in public spaces, emphasizing the centrality of important sacral and secular places. However, the public sculptures primarily serve representative and propagating goals. Quoting Christian Norberg-Schultz (1999) Januchta-Szostak (2010) remarks that the purpose of a piece of art is to retain and convey existential meanings while human, through perception and understanding the symbols, exposes themselves to an act of identification which consequently gives some meaning to their individual existence. He also emphasizes that the meaning revealed by art in a particular place also determines the character of the place. Like other mega-cities of the world, Lagos is adorned with numerous sculptural figures. These 38 figures do not only serve as aesthetic objects but symbolize a number of historical developments in the country; thus enabling the city competes with similar cities in the world. Oladugbagbe (2016) notes that effect of modern technology and adventure into inventions have made the human race more concerned with the environment, positively or otherwise and consciously or unconsciously. Similarly, Januchta-Szostak (2010) compares people living in urban cities to rats in a maze who need a lot of recognition to get acquainted with the environment they have been forced to live in. The author stresses this referring to E. C. Tolman's experiments on the behaviour of rats in mazes, performed in the 1940s, proved that both man and animals create a tentative, mental map to recognize and learn environmental relationship. The city of Lagos; being a commercial nerve-center of Nigeria, former capital of the country and a place where people with different cultural background converge, cannot but also grow with some artistic installations; which in most cases are sculptural monuments. However, the city is characterized by fast growing population, a lot of chaotic situations, partial lack of town and environmental planning and massive abuse of the environment; physical and human. Like most other urban cities of the world, outdoor sculptures in Lagos are sited in conspicuous places such as parks (amusement/recreation gardens), sports centers, institutions, places of worship and in most cases, at road junctions and round-about, thus making them visible. The sitting of most of the figures in road junctions is traceable to the importance of such road junction to the people who live around such places, a meeting point of people from different areas, people and spirits; as offerings are offered to the spirits there, and also, as a meeting point of pedestrians and other road users. The relevance of such figures cannot be over-emphasized; especially in the artistic, social, economic, political, cultural and historical life of the people of Lagos. Observers of these sculptural pieces create mental pictures through series of views they perceive as they move around the city. This was the legible street network connected by nodes of squares, marking out formally important places that facilitated the 'way finding' (Lynch, 1960 as cited in Januchta-Szostak, 2010). Literature is replete on the issue of outdoor sculpture in major cities of Nigeria; Folarin, 1989, Adepegba, 1995, Ikpakronyi, 1997, Adewolo, 1999, Akintounde, 2009 and so on. Similarly, Akintonde (2013) made an overview of outdoor sculpture in public places in the Southwestern part of Nigeria between 1900 and 2005 in an attempt to set them in chronological order, identify some historical problems, forms, style and themes of the sculpture; the media and techniques of production. The author (ibid) noted that there has been concerted effort toward critical appraisal of the manner of outdoor sculpture practice from any front as it is done in advanced countries. Laws guiding commission, production, erection and maintenance of outdoor sculpture are not enforced, thus, the audience are usually embarrassed with substandard work and then abuse the sculptures. This has generated a number of attitudes among the audience who forcefully remove or destroy them. All these authors have discussed the issue of outdoor sculpture extensive by focusing on certain geographical location within Nigeria but none of them have categorized outdoor sculptures in Lagos according to relevance and cultural significance. This is the main thrust of this paper. Objectives of the Study This paper attempts to: (i) discuss the significance and relevance of outdoor sculptures in Lagos State. (Ii)highlight and discuss few reasons for siting selected outdoor sculptures in their locations. Method This study adopts the following methodological approach for data collection and discussion; Personal visits to sites, literature review and observation of major political trends in the country with Lagos as a case study. 39 Significance and Relevance of Outdoor Sculptures in Lagos City a. Sculptures for Monumental Purpose Most of the figures found in Lagos are monuments done and sited to keep memory of people, events or history alive; examples include: WELCOME TO LAGOS/ARO META' Aro Meta (Idejo Chiefs) Formally - Toll Gate by Biodun Sodehinde, 1993. This figure is now located at the entrance to the city (formally at the Toll Gate) but now moved forward as a result of rapid expansion of the city; is presented as depicting the traditional hospitality of the people of Lagos. The monument is constituted of three human figures (Idejo Chiefs) dressed in white robes (that signifies peace) extending their hands to suggest the traditional welcome greeting. At the base of on which the figures stand are environmental icons such as sun, symbols, palms, canoes/boats,, people, fishes in water and Eyo mask dancers; all characteristic of Lagos city. This monument was unveiled by Col. Raji Rasaki in 1991 and it presents Lagos as a place where every visitor is welcome to enjoy the peaceful and exotic natural life. The hands of welcome that are extended to every visitor means that even urchins/rogues are welcome to the discomfort of the city inhabitants. The city also welcomes more people than it can accommodate and cater for as noticed in most busy streets of the city. After Lagos has welcomed the numerous people in search of the city's money along with the individuals in searching of good life with good intentions, the city turns back to sweep away unwanted guests through the constitution of the various anti-crime squads such as Operation Sweep, Rapid Response Squad, War Against Indiscipline/Kick Against Indiscipline (WAI/KAI) Brigades and so on by the government. Hospitality, which is qualified as being traditional in Lagos, becomes an indescribable term as its meaning has been interpreted differently. At times, what is provided as hospitality turns out to be a trap for exploitation of unwary visitors. The rendering of the concept meaningless implies that in the welcome sign on the monument, there is a silence on the characters of Lagos which is important in the reading and interpretation of the monument. The verbal anchorage 'Welcome to Lagos' privileges one of such interpretations since on the other hand, the outstretched hand of welcome shows a clenched fists of violent encounter with the police and thriving area boys.
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