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in the preceding year (1996, or in some case, . Statistics from the entries here show 1995). In all there are sixty-six publishing some sixty-six book printing presses, seventy houses. University Press Pic, Ibadan, estab- bookshops and book distributors, and 824 li- lished in 1978 and with more than 1,000 books braries. The libraries include state, national, in print, could release only fourteen titles in school and special libraries. 1995. Press, established Two most thoughtful inclusions in the Di- in 1980, with 102 titles in print, released only rectory are the last two segments entitled Ap- three books in 1996. Again in 1996, Evans pendix and Indexes. The Appendix features Brothers, established in 1966 and with over questionnaires on all the directories. This will 2,000 books in print, released only ten books, enable those who were not included to furnish and Fourth Dimension, established in 1977, information for inclusion in a future edition; it with over 800 titles in print, released only ten could also be used to update already published books. The deduction could be reached that information. The Indexes - listed alphabetical the decay in publishing hit an all-time high in by surname for authors, and business names the past ten years. If the companies above were for publishers, printers, etc.,- make tracing any publishing ten books or less annually since entry in the Directory a delight. their establishment in the 60s and 70s, they Directory of Nigerian Book Development is could not have released such large number of a well laid-out and timely publication that at- titles that they have. While the contemplation tests volubly to the editorial skill of of this landscape of decay depresses us, Spec- Chukwuemeka Ike. Hopefully an update would trum Books, Kraft Books and Zim Pan African follow soon. Perhaps, the Directory of Publishers come, like unravished maidens Organisations Involved in the Production, Im- bearing a bouquet of hope, with their 36, 16 and 15 new titles respectively in 1996. portation, and Distribution of Paper and other Materials for Book Development in Nigeria, Another interesting fact emerging from a and the Directory of Nigeria Book Publishing study of the entries in this part is that Nige- and Distribution Personnel shelved for lack of rian publishers have not yet come to grips with adequate data will be included then. For that the mechanics of international book distribu- future edition, the segment on published Ni- tion. Most of the companies distribute their gerian authors should indicate the type of book books through one outlet: their showroom/ written/edited by an author, and the ISBN. warehouse/office. Almost all the publishers These pieces of information would help inter- have no overseas distribution agent/channel; national acquisition librarians immensely. In only a handful have an arrangement with Af- its present state, however, with five directories rican Books Collective, and because ABC ac- (on Authorship, Publishing, Printing, Distribu- cepts a very limited number from one publisher tion - bookshops - and Libraries) the Directory at a time, this arrangement is grossly inad- of Nigerian Book Development is a unique ref- equate. erence material on the book industry in Nige- The other parts of the segment on Directo- ria. ries (parts 111-V) feature the directories of Book Printing Presses; Bookshops and Book Agbayi. a writer, is on the editorial team of Obifee Distribution Organisations; and Libraries in Under Western Eyes Krydz Ikwuemesi

INCE the beginning of this decade, They are interesting, too, not so much for there has been a re-newed interest in their scope and ambition as for the history they within Western art circles. generate. In the characteristic Occidentalist This has given rise to a number of ex- tradition, each of these exhibitions is accom- Shibitions and other projects focussing panied by quality publications, some of them on African art in Western Museums, galleries grand narratives, which extend the frontiers and related institutions. Such international of what could be seen as internationalist shows as Africa Hoy! Africa Explores, Les monologic artistic discourse led by the West. Magiciens de la Terre, Contemporary African Out of the exhibitions cited above, The Poetics Artists: Changing Traditions, Africa '95, The of Line and Transvangarde are the most recent Poetics of Line: Seven Artists of the Nsukka and, in line with tradition, they have given rise Group, and Transvangarde are very familiar. to two separate books. The first, written by

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Simon Ottenberg, NEW TRADITIONS FROM NIGERIA, SEVEN ARTISTS OF THE NSUKKA GROUP, Press in association with The National Museum of African Art, Washington & London, 1997. 302pp.

John Picton, EL ANATSUI. A SCULPTED HISTORY OF AFRICA, Saffron Boobs in conjunction with the October Gallery. London, 1998, 96pp.

Simon Ottenberg, with the title, New Tradi- century old; Anatsui's dexterity and tions from Nigeria: Seven Artists of the Nsukka transcultural vision as a sculptor blossomed Group, studies the origin and development of many years ago. Both issues have been part of Uli as a creative idiom in modern Nigerian art. the continuing debate - unsophisticated as it It uses the works of , Chike might be - on African art here on the continent. Aniakor, Obiora Udechukwu, Tayo Adenaike, The two publications then must be seen as part Olu Oguibe, El Anatsui, and Ada Udechukwu of a discursive continuum and not the heralds as a pedestal from which it advances its thesis of an alternative, if more authentic, critique, and conclusions. The second book resulting which they seem to pretend to be. In the na- from the exhibition 'Transvangarde' is El scent politics of globalisation, the above view Anatsui: A Sculpted History of Africa, it is a is very important, for as Everlyn Nicodemus collection of essays on the world-renowned puts it, 'if we do not take every opportunity to sculptor, written by John Picton, Gerard influence those people who are in charge of the Houghton, Yukiya Kawaguchi, Elizabeth keys to the exhibition spaces in North America, Lalous-chek, Simon Njami, and Elizabeth Peri- Europe and Japan, Willis. Although the books are published in two will continue to be a playground for fancies'. different parts of the Occidental World - the One may ask, how much of the African 'influ- one by the Smithsonian Institution in Wash- ence' - the African voice - shapes the theses of ington, D.C., and the other by Saffron Books both books? I am afraid it is almost minimal, in conjunction with the October Gallery in Lon- appropriated through books, oral interviews don they share a number of conceptual simi- and sundry publications. But in spite of that larities on which I shall focus presently before 'influence', one cannot rule out the ever greater examining their individual characters and influence of the author's subjectivity or what merits. Everlyn Nicodemus describes as the 'curator's subjectivity,' especially in reference to one who First, the books bring up the issue of the is well immersed in the waters of the anthro- relevance or otherwise of the 'intimate outsider' pological, 'neo-primitivising' Self-Other psy- in the study of African art. They are written by chology which pervades Western thinking people whose antecedents would repute as 'ex- Thus in spite of their reliance on some materi- perts in African art'. But beyond that, at a more als by 'intimate insiders', the ultimate voice critical level, those 'experts' appear to be the which emerges in the books - and that is nor- same old voice, the voice of neo-colonialisation, mal - is that of the authors bolstered by the the voice of the ventriloquist West, seeking to abundance in their environment of research speak for itself and the rest of the world. They and publishing facilities which often breeds are thus a clear example of the Westerncentric, 'heavy intellectualisation and theorisation in neo-expeditionist interest in African art sud- postmodern Euro/American art criticism; denly manifesting at a very remarkable pe- ...mechanism for hiding, rather than dealing riod in history. Although it would be most un- with, the very basic struggles for survival of fair to dismiss the two publications as part of African-born artists and others.' Although the usual fin de siecle gropings by peoples, Ottenberg professes to eschew this technique groups and intellectuals for new ideas, fresh and does so to a considerable extent, it is al- spin-offs and challenges outside what is most fully at work in the other book. Never- known, one cannot obviate the fact that they theless, despite their similarities in this re- are fairly rich in the trappings of the spect both books ultimately paint the picture postmodernist discourse in its sense as an of a 'terra incognita'. They invoke that point of empty harangue on the newness of a rechris- disequilibrium which is bound to emerge 'when tened old child. In other words, neither the brutally efficient Western field confronts Ottenberg nor Picton et al tells us anything economically weak and not yet much devel- new. Uli as a modern idiom is almost half a

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oped art structures,' like a child trying to domi- conjecture. Ottenberg's approach is largely nate a new set of toys. But beyond this neo- hermeneutical. He looks at generational devel- expeditionist spirit, one must acknowledge opment of Uli, starting with Uche Okeke and that the books represent serious intellectual Chike Aniakor. He has put Obiora Udechukwu contributions which like most new publica- and El Anatsui in the second generation. Next tions enrich existing traditions. Each book to them are Tayo Adenaike and Olu Oguibe and achieves this goal through methodical ap- Ada Udechukwu in that order. Ottenberg seems proach to its subject, subtly advancing the cur- to follow this pattern also in looking at the rent debate on new internationalism vis-a- works of these artists, appraising their histo- vis African artists . New Traditions from Ni- ries, growth, intellectual disposition, tech- geria is, for instance, a landmark in the docu- niques and stylistic individuation. His analy- mentation of the dynamics of the Uli paradigm. sis and inferences are insightful, but one needs Although it is every inch an ambitious pre- to take another look at his periodisation of the sentation, the author exhibits a good level of artists, as some earlier works seem to disagree modesty in coming to terms with his theme. with his position. Of particular note here is his He is aware of the skepticism of contemporary attempt to separate Obiora Udechukwu from African artists toward 'hegemonic Euro/ Uche Okeke and Chike Aniakor. Although American art criticism', be it postmodernist Udechukwu was Okeke and Aniakor's student in the early 1970s, the three of them have developed si- multaneously, with Udechukwu carry- ing the Uli crusade much farther than the others. Age dif- ference and student- teacher relation- ship apart, Udechukwu be- longs with Okeke and Aniakor to the same Uli period which can be de- scribed as'neo-clas- sical'. Outside this boundary, the next generation (with particular reference to New Traditions) would comprise El Anatsui and Tayo Adenaike. Olu Oguibe and Ada Udechukwu would belong to a third generation. Al- Agwolagwo (coils or not. Ipso facto, one observes a palpable though Ottenberg's line of classification does of the python), attempt by the author to achieve some degree not take much away from the substance of the 1988, by El Anatsui of balance between his own judgement and the book - considering that he is entitled to his artists' perception of their work and them- argument - it must be pointed out that this fac- selves. In this regard, he engages simply in tor could be misleading especially for a book the presentation, rather than the re-presen- which has the destiny of becoming the 'Bible' tation of the artists, avoiding as much as he of modern Uli in the Euro-American world. One can 'overly erudite' ideas of postmodernism expresses this fear not only in relation to the which, according to him, do not seem to be selective nature of the book and its classifica- compartible with 'the problems of social life in tions, but also - and more especially - for the Nigeria and other African countries'. Whether or not this methodology distances the book female representation in the book, Ada from 'the (West's) hegemonic, acquisitive, and Udechukwu. Ottenberg's criteria for selecting racialistic attitudes' may remain an issue for this particular female artist is not known. The choice is, in itself, not necessarily controvert-

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ible, as he had all the discretion to select his more vivid picture of the implications should specimen. It only becomes questionable when have been painted as a matter of history. One Ottenberg briefly mentions Ndidi Dike and such attempt in the concluding chapter of the Chinwe Uwatse in an attempt to paint a ho- book appears not to be far-reaching enough. listic picture of feminine contribution to the Aside from these observations, New Traditions development of Uli. This is bound to be so, as is a great book, not in itself, but in its poten- the two artists (Dike and Uwatse) have con- tial to provoke new thought on Uli. Its great- sistently espoused the Uli principles in their est asset is its accessibility - the simplicity of works, and have been active professionally. the author's language - and its rejection of the Equally questionable is the presence of Olu bombastic tone of the postmodernist school. Oguibe in this book. It would seem that he has As hinted earlier, it is in this regard that A imbibed too much of the postmodernist Zeit- Sculpted History of Africa contrasts with New geist to really fit into Ottenberg's label of Traditions. Its language and discursive param- 'Nsukka artists'. If Ottenberg sought to use eters are postmodernist par excellence. It de- his work to illustrate recent developments in rives from a concept woven around Anatsui's Uli, he is not fully successful, because of the work by the October Gallery. The concept, ad- overbearing external influences in his work. vanced by Gerard Houghton, is a postmodernist Like Ada Udechukwu, his inclusion also am- coinage. He calls it 'transvangarde' and uses it plifies the absence of some important expo- to describe Anatsui's reach beyond the home- nents such as Chuka Amaefuna, Ray Obeta, stead, and to validate his location in the West- ern mainstream. The book was published by the October Gal- lery to give 'an insight into the artist himself and his sources of inspiration,' and to make 'criti- cal assessment of his work'. To a large extent, the book suc- ceeds at both tasks. Consisting of six essays, one in German, one in French, four in English (with one translated from Japa- nese), the book metaphorically reflects the multilingual nature of Anatsui's artistic diction. Us- ing Anatsui as a springboard, the authors touch generally on definitive issues in African art, subtly making a case against the hard-edge traditional-con- temporary binary which Picton describes as the creation of'old heart museum ethnography and anthropology.' and which, to paraphrase him, has almost or- dained the so-called traditional as the archetype of African art. Even 'in the and possibly Barthosa Nkurumeh. Although The Road to context of the persistence in Europe of a 'myth Nsukka. 1987, by Ottenberg makes some references to of primitivising', the authors seems to agree Obiora Amaefuna's work, including a photograph of that Anatsui, the transvangarde, dipped in the Udechukwu one on page 74, one would think that the works brew of Adeinsibuli, largely transcends such a of this highly experimental artist who died in myth. It is Picton himself that leads this 1993, are a major breakthrough in Uli and arguement, and with great wit and charismatic should have been given greater consideration logic, he concludes that 'African is not the la- in the pacesetting publication. Besides, the bel El Anatsui necessarily always requires'. author could have given some more attention One refrain which seem to infect almost all to the wider 'Nsukka group' in the form of a the authors, if not all is the insistence on Uche summary, not only to further enlighten the Okeke's influence on the work of Anatsui. This reader on the endless possibilities in Uli, but issue is almost over-emphasised as if Okeke also to reflect on what has happened in the himself were the personification of Uli. It was arena beyond his chosen specimen. If the se- Uli, among other art traditions, that sharp- lected artists have left a considerable weight ened Anatsui's vision from the late 1970s and in their trail, as Ottenberg rightly suggests, a

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it comprises several artists. One must also his vision usually encapsulated in art, culture, remember that Anatsui, before coming into science and technology. Simon Njami echoes contact with Uli and Okeke's 'natural synthe- this sentiment on page 72 when he says that sis' theory, had been involved in the Sankofa 'La lecon que nous donne depuis quelques philosophy way back in Ghana. These experi- annees l'art comtemporain africain, l'art ences, coupled with his interaction with other contemporain tout court, est que tout art est artists in Aka and other fora, have contrib- necessairement le fruit d'un processus de col- uted to his intellectual and artistic resource. lage et de permanence' In effect, nothing re- And he blends this with a clear perception of ally new is said. We are presented with the global art trends. This outlook owes as much excitement and astonishment of the West at a to Okeke as it does to all the other contribut- re-discovery, the re-discovery of African art, ing factors. Together they have enabled the garnished with the techniques of art history artist's work to shift 'effortlessly between Af- and criticism. Interestingly, however, A rican and Western aesthetic sensibilities, Sculpted History of Africa is a harbinger of a mastering both but belonging to neither one gathering culturo-artistic invasion which holds exclusively 'and thus making 'an appropriate several implications for African art and the example of the transvangarde'. Although each African identity in the next century. New Tra- author tries to look at Anatsui from a differ- ditions encodes the same potentials. But be- ent standpoint, there seems to be some sort yond these possibilities, these books may also of harmonisation in some of their postulations, change our own perception of our art and our especially in relation to issues of definition. approach to its dissemination. They may do so, Each is aware that he/she is presenting a fa- not necessarily by presenting new vistas be- miliar stranger to the Western audience and fore us, but principally by challenging our 'in- attempt is thus made to shed some light on timate insiders' to lick their lips, in the words the work of the artist - this new entrant into of , rather than allow the har- the highly-policed confines of Occidentalist mattan to do it for them. In contemplating this internationalism. Of the six authors, however, challenge, Mosquera's warning recurs, vis-a- Elizabeth Peri-Willis' contribution remains vis the books under discussion: 'the desire and the most insightful and composite, not only power of the postmodern West to curate the for its more accessible language but also for rest of the world now begins. If we uncritically the author's ability to weave history, analysis accept it, flattered by being at all payed atten- and interpretation into her narrative. This is tion to, we will soon find ourselves in a new, perhaps enhanced by her earlier personal contacts with Anatsui during her sojourn in even more sophisticated form of cultural colo- Nigeria in the 1980s. In sum, the book nialism.' epitomises the postmodernist claptrap about its own perceptive generosity and its ac- Ibwuemesi, writer and erstwhile lecturer in fine art at claimed belief in the universality of man and the , lives in Enugu. Literature Matters returns HE newsletter Literature Matters is- morial on recently deceased poet, Ted Hughes sued by the Literature Department and among others, reports on the festival of of the British Council in London re- writing from Commonwealth islands, Tturns after a pause in publication, or Mauritius, July 1998, the Booker Prize and the at the least a cessation of appearance in Nige- Edinburgh Book Festival. ria, for some while. The well-produced, UK-printed paper, how- Literature Matters reappears in a new de- ever, records in its prefactory sections on a sign format, but not any less committed to the recent and regrettable racial insult on the former literary tributes, conference, seminar writer, Caryl Phillips who was on a reading tour and other event reports, directories of new overseas from 'someone close to the Council at book publications from the UK, announcement and reflections on topical issues by writers and an official dinner' which Alastair Niven, direc- critics. tor of Literature notes with sadness but defi- nitely with a resolve that henceforwards, 'All The newlook, now characterised by page- managers in the Council will have mandatory head illustrations, retains the former succinct- race awareness training, to which resources ness and textual economy. will be committed and the consequences of Issue No 25 (January 1999) carries a me- which will be closely monitored'.

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