Why level of art appreciation by Nigerians is low

Osunfisan

- Osunfisan

A veteran creative artist, Oluyomi Taiwo Osunfisan, in this interview speaks on why the level of art appreciation in Nigeria is low. He also speaks on why he uses computer to do most of his works.

What is the level of art appreciation by Nigerians?

Very low

Can you tell us why you said it is low?

Osunfisan

It is like children, if you don’t interest them to appreciate art, nobody will appreciate it. Just like language if you don’t speak it to your children the language will die. You just hear names of very few people who have been artists they‘ve done their own and that’s all. Whereas, if you are taking the children to exhibition centers, you will discover they will pick up. That will bring me to tell you I how came into art at a very young age. When we were in primary school, we were going for exhibition but one day in my house, there is an Igbo man who made a sketch of a girl called Amuzia near my house. I was so captivated that somebody could draw like that. I enroll myself for private lessons without my parents knowing it and I was going to his house for almost one year before I entered secondary school. Even before then, I have been hearing stories of arts and their teachers but unfortunately when I got to secondary school, there was no art teacher there. That was Mayflower School Ikenne, Ogun State, Nigeria. The school was just four years old then, we were the fourth set. There was only art society. I met Pastor Kumuyi, Deeper Life Bible Church General Overseer, they were in form three but, there was nothing like seniority even Bishop Mike Okonkwo was my class met there. But one way or the other, I took over the art society there because they discovered I had experience and they moved back and asked me to head it till my final year. After that, I did art exam and that was my best subject. I went for higher school certificate not still thinking that I’m going to be an artist before I knew what was happening in the final year I looked at the syllabus, I discovered it was what I could do. The principal there who did not know me said I think it is so easy. Therefore, I entered the General Certificate Examination (GCE) and to my surprise, that was my best subject. That was how I concluded that it is my talent and a gift from God. That was how I went to Ahmadu Bello University to Zaria to study Fine Art. If I had done ministry job, as I retire now I will just sit down and be counting the day that I will die but, it is not so now because I get so busy that my wife will be worried. But I’m enjoying myself.   

Between traditional painting and computer painting which is more tasking?

As an artist, whether a painter, textual designer, graphic designer or sculpture, first thing you learn is to know how to draw. If you can’t draw you are not an artist because you will not be giving the correct information. Drawing is a very major part of art and ability to draw is the only thing that makes you an artist. To be an artist is for your draughtsman ship to be very good, and if it is very good you can use the idea into so many other areas. You can see Victor Uwaifo, he is a sculpture, and his drawing is good. We have so many artists in the past but one thing is that a lot of people are waiting for government patronage or institution, they are not thinking of the public. When we were young we were going to exhibition houses but nowadays children do not go because they have not been exposed to that probably this type of thing will expose them.

Osunfisan

Therefore, each one has its own task and it is as tasking as the person who is doing it. It depends on what you are doing. If you are a good artist you are a good artist. They are both tasking, an artist is always an artist whatever material you use and you have to put your skill to use.

Kindly give a summary of various painting media you work with including their advantages and disadvantages?

Before I go into that, it is better I say how I came about using the computer. I was trained as an artist, a graphic designer. I came out of university in 1971. So after that, I started an advertising job. I was the owner with a partner of that job. But along the line, I was doing some jobs on my own and I’m one of those careful persons. I will never throw all the jobs I did in the university away, I always keep them. I saw and picked some of my friend’s works they threw away after our graduation.

When I was in the studio, I had one Mr. Olotu working for me. When I want to do things for myself he will always do it for me. He will always tell me, Oga some of these works you are doing during the office hour or out of office can’t you go and exhibit them. I will say no. It got to a stage, some of the works were ready for sale and I said I didn’t want to sell them and he asked me, ‘why?’ But at a particular point in time I discovered that time was changing. You know before now when you want to do publication you will go to a printer he will type set for you, I discovered that the typesetting we were doing was cut and paste so I told my boy that the computer would throw you out of business if you are not careful. If you go and check graphic studio it’s not what it used to be in the 1980s. It has changed. You will only find computers there. At the time, I went to learn computer my boys were laughing at me. They said, “You this old man you are going to learn computer”. I told them that this machine will throw them out of business.

I called the first job I did hair, mood and texture. So, I used computer for so many things for example hand retouching, I can retouch job that I have done before that are not good enough for me or some of them that have spoilt I can retouch them, I use it for finishing looks, drawing, painting, sizing of a job, getting contrast and special effect but with manual. Once you do a job that is it, but with a computer, I’m having the original copy and can manipulate that job.

Fortunately, I am a graphic artist and I like clean surrounding so, the computer helps me to achieve that. So when I am painting everything am using is here all I need to do is to bring them out.

Can you tell us why you use computer for your painting?

Osunfisan

The reason is that I found out that now I’m old. I am 72 years of age and I retired from my job over 10 years ago, so I have been doing this job. To be very frank with you, I traveled to the United States of America because of light. When I got to the US where my children are, I can work throughout one month or three months without light going away; and I do finish more jobs there. I am glad that electricity in Nigeria has improved. Before, I used generator and when you use generator. Sometimes, I will feel that I should just be sitting down doing nothing but I also discovered that I have almost about 70 jobs that I have done, some of them I have not even printed or framed. Along the line, when I do this job and when people buy probably in the US, you find out that they will forget framing it. Why they forget is that the job I sold to them probably at about $100 will cost them like $20 to frame. So a lot of them will just keep it without framing it. That was when I got to the extent of framing it ready for people. So people here in Nigeria get it framed if they want to buy.

I started using computer to paint because I want to share my art knowledge with people. Since I have the original with me, I can sell at a lower price so that people can use paintings for decoration not that it’s meant for the rich people alone, that is one of the reasons that is pushing me to be doing this job.

What has been the public reaction towards your painting?

I have not even gone to the public yet its only people around me that know what I’m doing. When they see it they request to buy. I discover it is a lot of job, so I don’t want to go out in a wrong way. There are lots of things I want to prove. I want the younger generation to know that they already have a tool that they can be using for their art. It may come to the fact later. I may be the one putting some of them through, and to my own surprise, I check the internet to look for those people who are doing the same thing that I’m doing. Do you know I have not found them? Presently, I have over 15 ideas that I have not finished so, I know am going to be occupied throughout God’s willing that I am alive. So at my retiring age I want to keep on working. So for now, my objective is for people to be able to buy the art they like without paying so high for it. In some places, one work may cost N300, 000.00.  How many people can afford it whereas, I brought the price of my own down so that people can use it for decoration. So one of the things driving me is to expose this to the public; I want younger children to be able to use the same thing because this is their time. I happen to be in the old school but somehow, something has brought me to younger generation so, I want to expose it to younger generation. 

How durable is computer based painting?

No arts last forever even the monaliza, at a particular point in time they have to call an artist to come and retouch it because it will flake and get dirty but what I’m having is different because they are printed on canvas; canvas retain the colour. Printing has gone so high now that you can get a job as if you are stamping it, colour for colour unlike before you have to go through the four stages, now, you can go direct. And then this one will last, it is not the one that will flake when it gets dry. Most of the old arts when it gets flaked they have to invite a printer to come and retouch it. You do that by putting it into a computer, taking a good photograph of it you now scan and then start retouching it.    

Does piracy have any negative effect on your works?

I’ve had that experience. I opened a website and it was hacked but as far as I am concerned it won’t stop me.

What have you done to guard against it?

I had to open another website and abandon that one. My son who is a computer person found out that the password used for that one was too simple that anybody can gate crash it so he advised I use a rare password that people will not get easily.

Some people say computer painting is not original like handmade- what’s your view?

They are making a mistake, I’m sure when computer started, and they call it main frame. You can see one computer, the machine that will be controlling it will fill this house, but now you can have a whole computer in your hand.  The first computer I bought in 1975 was only 72 Meg, having frame and everything whereas ordinary phone of mine here is two gigabytes, so as at now when I had this type of computer I had terabyte. It is so big that it can carry any message. So anybody who thinks its child’s play let them come and try. You can come and splash colour that is not artistry again, you are only playing. It is just like you have a child flash colours and you say this is fine and then you frame it for that child. But what I’m talking about is art that contains the element of draughtsman ship, the element of use of colours, the element of beauty, and the element of everything in the art. So as far as I am concerned, a tool is a tool, and any tool you are using, when you understand it well, you are getting a message to the people.