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The first solo UK
exhibition of the Beninoise artist, Julien Sinzogan, opened at the
October Gallery in London on September 29. Attracting artists and art
enthusiasts of different races, the exhibition, titled ‘Spirit Worlds’,
explores the theme of the Transatlantic slavery and the spiritual
return of long-lost African souls to their homeland.

Employing varied
media, Sinzogan, also an architect, created an emotive atmosphere that
not only took viewers back in time to the horror of that period but
also made a bold statement on spirituality and the indestructibility of
the African soul and cultural identity.

Visa denied

The absence of
Sinzogan himself from the exhibition’s opening event, however, cast
some shadow over the event. Elisabeth Lalouschek, Artistic Director of
the October Gallery, disclosed that problems with obtaining a visa, had
kept the artist from attending. She however expressed hopes that the
artist will be able to visit before the six-week exhibition rounds off.

The artist
previously featured in ‘Voyages’, an October Gallery exhibition of his
work and those of Zimbabwean sculptor Tapfuma Gutsa, which ran from May
to June 2007, to mark the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave
trade. Sinzogan had attended the opening of the exhibition at the
October Gallery on May 16, 2007.

For ‘Spirit
Worlds’, the collection on show includes sixteen works which employ
different media such as natural pigments, acrylic, coloured inks as
well as mixed media. Many of the pieces, according to Lalouschek, have
been reserved by collectors. “Their prices range between 4,500 and
16,000 pounds sterling. The October Gallery likes to exhibit Sinzogan’s
work because they are excellent pieces of art and they attract good
sales,” she said.

Paul Goodwin, Tate
Britain curator, gave a brief speech about the artist and his works,
while formally declaring the exhibition open. “I first came across
Sinzogan’s art at the Victoria and Albert Museum in 2007. It was titled
‘Uncomfortable Truth’ and was exhibited to commemorate the 200th
anniversary of the parliamentary abolition of the slave trade,” said
Goodwin.

Particularly
striking in its detailed execution and use of colour, “His work dealt
with something I, and many other blacks across the world, have always
thought about.” Goodwin continued, “[Sinzogan] put a positive spin on
something that’s usually a dark subject; with the energy he gives his
drawings, as well as the colours and spiritual themes he employs. He
put beauty into an issue associated with ugliness.”

According to
Lalouschek, a lot of Sinzogan’s works derive from a need “to recognise,
remember and re-present the sights, scenes and shared history of those
almost-forgotten times,” and the artworks detailing varied subjects
associated with slavery, achieve just that.

Cross-cultural

Among them is a
portrait of four ‘Yoruba Chiefs’- supposedly the first point of contact
for the intending slave traders; a mixed media work on a wooden panel
depicted slaves chained together walking towards a destination unknown;
several colourful drawings of ships with bird-like depictions of
spirits titled ‘Gates of Return’; and ‘Le Jetty’, the only work which
shuns a colourful visage, employing instead brown and yellow to depict
hundreds of chained slaves going onboard the ships that would cart them
away.

The collection also
includes a number of drawings depicting the Egungun masquerades in all
their vibrant and spiritual glory, while a mixed media artwork of the
Egungun costume took centre stage in the main hall of the gallery. One
of Sinzogan’s Egungun work had been the showpiece of the ‘Voyages’
exhibition at the October Gallery three years ago. The artist also
hosted Elisabeth Lalouschek in the Benin Republic, so she could see
real Egunguns (masquerades) in action.

Speaking further on
Sinzogan’s general theme, Goodwin opined that Sinzogan’s works have
cross-racial appeal. “It is open to everyone. The slave trade was a
universal moment in time. The West became rich, and Africa was
impoverished. And the globalisation we now experience has its root in
the slave trade,” he declared.

Goodwin concluded
by expressing his disappointment about the reason behind the artist’s
absence, saying, “A lot of Artists from Africa and the Caribbean face
this inability to obtain visas for exhibitions. And there is no reason
why this should be so.”

‘Spirit Worlds’ at the October Gallery, 24 Old Gloucester Street, London WC1N 3AL – until November 6.