OYASAF
2013 Fellow, Ms Kimberli Gant of the University of
Texas, Austin, U.S., who is currently in Nigeria, focuses Lagos as seen through
the lenses of photographers over 50 years period.
During
an interactive forum with some members of the creative community at OYASAF office,
in Lagos, Gant explained what she
tagged An analysis of photographic images of Lagos from
1963 to the present.
Image of Oshodi Market – Lagos, Nigeria (2008), Courtesy of National Geographic Online.
Project History.
•To conduct research on Nigerian photographers
who have been documenting Lagos since Independence
•To be introduced to a wide range of
photographers, both established, mid-career and emerging
•To meet photographers from multiple generations
and both sexes.
Project Background
•WHY LAGOS?
1.I have been interested in the relationship
between landscape images (urban & rural) and questions of cultural &
national identity (both self-identification & imposed identification)
2.Lagos has been a popular a subject matter for
scholars and curators in Europe & the United States since the early 2000s,
but research has been very limited
3.I wanted to focus on a city within the
continent of Africa to reflect my scholarly interests in Africa
Project Evolution
•Learning about the history of photography in
Nigeria
•How photography within the hierarchy of art
practices within Nigeria
•How photographers fit within the hierarchy of
art practitioners in Nigeria
•Different types of photography within Nigeria.
•Focus in the media and academia tends to be on
the following
–How the structure of the city works via urban
planners and architects
–Journalists have focused on the extreme
population growth over the past two decades
–Repeated images in the areas such as Makoko,
Oshodi market, and specificities such as danfos and the “go-slow”
•Imagery of Lagos tends to focus on impoverished
areas
•Dilapidated houses and building structures
•Images, such as Rem Koolhaas’ films, are often
aerial images of the city, though some to get more intimate ground level shots
•Most exhibitions and articles on Lagos focus
within the 21st century, with a few examples of the past done by
Western photographers.
of the University of Texas, Austin, U.S
|
Founder of OYASAF, Prince Yemisi Shyllon and OYASAF 2013 Fellow, Kimberli Gant of University of Texas, U.S.,during an interactive Session, in Lagos. PHOTO BY : OGUNTIMEHIN ARIYO |
Lagos by Lagosians.
•The artists I have been working with present
Lagos in a much more nuanced way
–The varying forms of architecture, both past
and present, that dot various parts of the city
–How the city used architecture as way to
present its post-Independence modernity
–How the city has evolved over the past forty
years
–Images and viewpoints from the way you move
throughout the city, via the various roads and bridges
–The ecological issues facing Lagos as it
develops
–The political issues that face all Nigerians,
where Lagos becomes a microcosm for the entire nation.
FURTHER INVESTIGATIONS
–The various photographers’ styles
•Tam Fiofori’s influence of filmmaking in his
use of sequence
•Ojeikere’s strong interest in shapes and
emphasis on repetition within buildings
•Ogunfuyi’s ability to bring an intimacy to the
events he captures
•Opara’s strong use of levels and clear lines
•Akinbiyi’s use of strong parallel lines,
complementing his idea of the road.
Project Development.
•Research will continue on throughout the summer
and academic year, as I begin to write my investigations down and find linkages
between styles and content
•Upon completion of the dissertation in 2015,
the project will evolve into a large-scale, group museum exhibition and
catalogue
–This will include further trips to Lagos to
further my initial meetings during current trip and create more relationships
with other artists