₦airaland Forum

Door of the chapel of the Apostolic Delegation, Lagos - carved by Ben Enwonwu - 1965

rummmy:
He didn't make his own sculpture.
Who did he mentor.,?

joshkke:
Actually a lot, I read a news story about him having numerous apprentices. I was wondering myself where they all are.

This is probably his most famous apprentice. He is a legend in his own right and he often collaborated with Professor Enwonwu in later years.

Many associate the name Bruce Onobrakpeya with Prof Ben Enwonwu, another master artist. Are both of you contemporaries?

When I left Zaria, I served apprenticeship under him in Lagos. I was with him. So he was ahead of us all. When I was at Zaria, he actually came to lecture us, talk to the art department, people in the university and so on. So he was ahead of us and by the time we came out, Ben had already made big name. He had printed and sculpted the Queen of England and he had attended international conferences and had made artworks for the museums and other places. So Ben had already been fully established. Ben is not our contemporary. Ben was far ahead of us.

Today Is Bruce Onabrakpeya's 92nd Birthday
https://www.nairaland.com/8199593/today-bruce-onabrakpeyas-92nd-birthday

"I will not accept an inferior position in the art world. Nor have my art called African because I have not correctly and properly given expression to my reality. I have consistently fought against that kind of philosophy because it is bogus.

European artists like Picasso, Braque and Vlaminck were influenced by African art. Everybody sees that and is not opposed to it. But when they see African artists who are influenced by their European training and technique, they expect that African to stick to their traditional forms even if he bends down to copying them. I do not copy traditional art. I like what I see in the works of people like Giacometti but I do not copy them. I knew Giacometti personally in England, you know. I knew he was influenced by African sculptures. But I would not be influenced by Giacometti, because he was influenced by my ancestors”.

“Art is not static, like culture. Art changes its form with the times. It is setting the clock back to expect that the art form of Africa today must resemble that of yesterday otherwise the former will not reflect the African image. African art has always, even long before western influence, continued to evolve through change and adaptation to new circumstances. And in like manner, the African view of art has followed the trend of cultural change up to the modern times”.

- Ben Enwonwu (1950)

I forgot to include the chapel doors!

I'll post pictures of them tomorrow (hoepfully they'll attach).