Nigeria Content Online

The adopted son of
the late Susanne Wenger, Sangodare Ajala, has won the third annual
Nigerian Breweries/African Arts Foundation (AAF) National Art
Competition.

Mr Ajala’s work,
titled ‘Fire of the Nation Burns Still,’ was adjudged the best out of
30 exhibited at the finals held at Civic Centre, Lagos Island, on
Wednesday evening. He got N1.5 million for winning the competition
themed ‘Chronicles of a Great Nation at Fifty,’ and organised to
commemorate Nigeria’s 50th Independence anniversary. Painter, Stanley
Dudu, and sculptor, Fidelis Odogwu, who came second and third got N1
million and N500, 000 respectively.

Mama’s fruits

Mr Ajala attributed
his success to years of training under the Austria-born Osun priestess,
also known as ‘Adunni Olorisa’ who died last year. “It was Mama Susanne
Wenger who insisted that we must have formal education, particularly in
the study of contemporary arts, and we are grateful today that we are
reaping the good fruits,” he said.

Managing Director
of Nigerian Breweries Plc, Paul Hamers, said the competition in its
third edition was part of the organisation’s effort to encourage
creativity and promote the arts. Mr Hamers said the first edition, with
‘The Unbreakable Nigerian Spirit’ as its theme, produced 10 winners who
were given the opportunity to exhibit their works in Lagos, Abuja, and
Amsterdam. The second edition, themed ‘Nigeria: The Future I See,’
produced four zonal winners.

He noted that the
competition was open to all budding artists, and that the scope had
been broadened to include diverse artistic genres such as new media,
photography, video, painting and sculpture. “This sponsorship remains
part of a broad initiative to support the promotion of arts as well as
the development of talents in various fields of endeavour,” Mr Hamers
said.

Director of AAF, Azu Nwagbogu, said that the 2010 edition of the
competition recorded more than 300 entries. He said that a jury,
comprising arts critics, curators and artists, shortlisted 50 entries,
out of which the 30 finalists were selected. “We are encouraged by
increased local interest in the ever-increasing medium of creative
expression and have observed a significant rise in the standard of
artworks submitted,” he said.