Niyi Olagunju’s Earth Seeds

Niyi Olagunju’sEarth Seeds

Lukho Witbooi

The Xhosa people's collective singing practice, known as Amagwijo, is deeply rooted in their culture and is renowned for its healing qualities. Listening to these songs can evoke emotional responses, as if a suppressed voice from the past has emerged into the light, prompting contemplation of worlds and times that could have been.

Similarly, the artworks of Nigerian artist Niyi Olagunju in the ARAK Collection [1] offer a deep connection, a sense of rebirth, and the potential to create something new. These works represent a significant moment in African art history, embodying a necessary yet unfortunate responsibility as the world grapples with progress and the creation of the future. This has led to an age in which our humanity feels stripped away; a phenomenon of dehumanisation not only confined to Africans but felt globally.

During colonisation, there might have been opportunities to confront this dehumanising force, but it has since adopted a new guise, promising a better world while continuing its destructive path. In contemplating this idea, the philosopher Achille Mbembe identifies 'That the desire for apartheid is also present in other classes, middle classes, popular subaltern classes, one sees in things like renewed infatuation with borders, how contemporary technologies are harnessed to turn unwanted bodies into moving, portable boundaries, and so forth, and so on’. [2]

Thus, it seems to me, there is something in the human spirit that seeks disintegration—perhaps similar to the idea that Nietzsche identified as our desire to escape the body. [3] For in this desire to exist, there is perhaps the idea of creating separation, part of which stems from the creation of hierarchies. The idea of civilisational progress now encompasses humanity, creating new global problems often described as techno-feudalism. It is not just Africans who are in peril but the entire world. Yet, when we engage artworks from the Nigerian artist Olangunju, it appears that it is the African spirit that bears the responsibility of compensating for this global condition.

EKPIRI #24 (2017) is a hanging sculpture created from pods of ekpiri seeds, gold leaf, copper leaf, and copper wire to form a blanket-like structure. The seeds themselves are large, resembling eggs, and some appear broken. The artwork has a unique colour palette, featuring shades of brown and gold. Being abstract, the sculpture does not depict figures but still presents a sense of depth, and a fluidity that may evoke emotions. Ekpiri seeds harbour spiritual importance, connecting the piece to African cultural practices, such as their use as bead necklaces for traditional dances in Nigeria. Though it has historical and cultural significance, there is also an element that allows one to appreciate it from an aesthetic perspective that speaks to our times. This is due to the artist's craftsmanship, and the ability to create something that can speak a universal language, one that is quite presentable for galleries and white walls, whilst remaining true to indigenous form.

Here I am forced to remember a scene in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart (1958) when the egwugwu appeared: 

The women and children sent up a great shout and took to their heels. It was instinctive. A woman fled as soon as an egwugwu came in sight. And when, as on that day, nine of the greatest masked spirits in the clan came out together it was a terrifying spectacle. Even Mgbafo took to her heels and had to be restrained by her brothers. [4]

In a sense, this scene captures in prose the power of art to heal, wound, and initiate higher spiritual realities. Mbembe, in reference to the African mask, sees it as the ultimate symbol of the living to defend themselves against death.[5]

‍EKPIRI #33 (2017) shares similarities to the previous sculpture. It is also made from ekpiri pods, connected by copper wires and coated in gold leaf, illustrating the dualities of our time, in which the spiritual constantly intermixes with the material.

This artwork provokes what Moeletsi Mbeki has called The Mineral Resource Complex which hangs like a noose around African countries. [6] Mbeki argues that the mineral resource complex in some countries is dominated by foreign investors who are primarily interested in exporting raw, unprocessed minerals rather than beneficiating them domestically. He sees this as a 'neo-colonial economy' that has persisted even after the end of apartheid. This spiritual and material context underpins the conditions in which Olagunju exists and through which his work is made, giving birth to an alchemical mix that presents itself well in the medium of seeds. 

These hanging sculptures give credence to the idea that the future of our planet 'will play out in Africa.' At surface level, this statement may appear hopeful, but consider a quote from Carl Jung: 'For every piece of conscious life that loses its importance and value—so runs the law—there arises a compensation in the unconscious. In a sense, it is the artists that can make this spiritual compensation for their age.' [7] African artists seem to do this quite well. I am reminded of a statement from the artist Yinka Shonibare, during an exhibition in Cape Town, in which he spoke about the fact that, despite his global success and the universal appeal of his work, there is something in his spirit that pulls him back to his roots: 

Psychologically and historically, because of colonialism, we Africans have been pushed away from our ancestors and heritage. But actually, there is a kind of reconnection with my ancestors with these works because I feel like the spirit of my ancestors. It's almost like they tried to remove it from me by forcing Western education into me, but here I am, trying to make a reconnection. [8]

Shonibare continues and clarifies that this particular crisis is widespread:  

Unfortunately in Europe, many people of African origin disproportionately suffer from mental health issues purely because of this issue. Not having a sense of identity, a sense of Self or being proud of who you are creates a lot of confusion. So artists like myself need to connect to my ancestors and feel like I do not have to try or pretend to be a Western artist. [9]

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Thus a question arises when I look at EKPIRI #33. Is African art operating under the spirit of regression? The answer, of course, is no. What African art does and continues to do is offer a much-needed balance in how we imagine a better future. These artworks reflect seeds that grow into trees that can pollinate. These seeds, despite their numerous colours, connect us to nature and to the dust we will return to. Thus the ideas that Olagunju’s earth seeds give us are our humanness and the re-articulation for our times, ideas from ancient Africa. Mbembe writes: 

Humanity was the seed that one placed in the soil. It dies, is reborn, and produces the tree, fruit, and life. It was to a large extent to celebrate the marriage of the seed and life that ancient Africans invented speech and language, objects and techniques, ceremonies and rituals, works of art—indeed, social and political institutions. The seed had to produce life in the fragile and hostile environment in the midst of which humanity also had to find space for work and rest—an environment that needed protection and repair. What made most vernacular knowledge useful was the part it played in the endless labour of reparation. It was understood that nature was a force in and of itself. [10]

In exploring the profound artworks of Olagunju, particularly through artworks like EKPIRI #24 and EKPIRI #33, a poignant reflection on humanity's current trajectory emerges. These hanging sculptures, crafted from ekpiri seeds and infused with spiritual and historical resonance, serve as more than artistic expressions; they embody a vital reconnection to African cultural roots amidst a world increasingly beset by technological dominance and global crises.

Olagunju's creations remind us that amidst the relentless march of progress, there exists a spiritual duty—a call to remember our origins and the natural world from which we derive our existence. The seeds, symbolic of growth and rebirth, bridge the gap between past and present, offering not just aesthetic beauty but a profound narrative of resilience and continuity. They challenge us to reconsider our relationship with nature and our collective responsibility to protect and nurture it.

In these sculptures, we find echoes of Mbembe's assertion that humanity's essence lies in its ability to cultivate and repair, to foster life amid adversity. They speak to a deeper truth about the role of art, particularly African art, in offering a counterbalance to the dehumanising forces of modernity. Through their form and material, Olagunju's works suggest that our future hinges not solely on technological advancement but on a holistic integration of spiritual wisdom and environmental stewardship.

Ultimately, Olagunju's 'Earth Seeds' provoke contemplation, urging us to reconsider our path forward. Similar to Amagwijo, that capture collective voices appearing to well up from the earth's core, these seeds offer a path that embraces diversity, respects heritage, and nurtures the seeds of humanity for generations to come.

Cover artwork: Niyi Olagunju,Niyi Olagunju’s Earth Seeds, 2017. Ekpiri pods, Gold leaf, Copper leaf and Copper wire, 136 x 95 cm

[1] Niyi Olagunju | Artist | Arak Collection. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.arakcollection.com/artists/niyi-olagunju

[2] Mbembe, A. 2020. “It might well be that the future of our planet will play out in Africa.” Disenz. Retrieved from https://www.disenz.net/en/achille-mbembe-it-might-well-be-that-the-future-of-our-planet-will-play-out-in-africa/

[3] Nietzsche, F. (2006). Thus spoke Zarathustra (A. del Caro, Trans.). Cambridge University Press. (Original work published 1883–1891)

[4] Achebe, C. 2006 [1958]. Things Fall Apart. Penguin Classics, 89. 

[5] [10] Mbembe, A. 2017. Critique of Black Reason. Translated by Laurent Dubois. 180: Duke University Press, 181.

[6] Mbeki, M. 2009. Architects of Poverty. Picador Africa, Pan Macmillan. 

[7] Jung, C. G. 1933. Modern Man in Search of a Soul. Translated by W. S. Dell and Cary F. Baynes. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World.

[8] See Witbooi, L. 2022. “Self and Soul: An Interview with Yinka Shonibare CBE RA”. ArtThrob (23 November). Available online: https://artthrob.co.za/2022/11/23/self-and-soul-an-interview-with-yinka-shonibare-cbe-ra/.

[9] Ibid. 

[10] Mbembe, A. 2017. Critique of Black Reason. Translated by Laurent Dubois. 180: Duke University Press, 190.