The exhibition is a monumental project by Nigerian artists Ozioma Onuzulike, in an exhibition entitled Seed Yams of Our Land which explores  yam (Dioscorea spp.) – a prestigious and sacred food crop, and the yam barn – a site of political and economic power among various ethnic  groups in Nigeria – as metaphors to engage the human condition in Africa shaped by unequal relations with first world countries and their  imperial powers. Over the years, the artist has explored the materiality of clay and the allegorical images locked in its working processes. He relates his studio processes to the ‘resource curse’ that has plagued many African countries.

The processes of working with his primary material (clay) – hammering, crushing, wedging, kneading, slapping, cutting, slamming, punching and firing – are metaphors for the violence associated with resource exploration, exploitation and control, which mostly affects young people and children in Africa. His current project, Seed Yams of our Land, reflects on the artist’s studio processes and ideas related to the cultivation and storage of yam. In ironically creating a barn of terracotta yam tubers in various conditions of damage, the artist invites visitors to reflect on the issues of man’s inhumanity to man and the horrific implications of conflicts and wars on human beings and on the natural environment. For him, the yam with its physical and conceptual attributes offers fitting metaphors with which to engage the human condition in Africa.

1. Installation view of  Seed Yam of  Our Land   by  Ozioma Onuzulike, showing  (on gray plinth in the middle of the room)  Migration  series and Yam Vessels, (on the white plinth) Yam Vessels, and (on the gray wall) Light Boxes,  Xray films and Wooden shelf, Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos, September 14th , 2019,  Photo  by  Nnaemezie Asogwa.
2. Installation view of Seed Yam of  Our Land   by  Ozioma Onuzulike, (on the gray wall) Light Boxes, Xray films and Wooden shelf, Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos, September 14th , 2019, Photo by  Nnaemezie Asogwa
3. Installation view of  Seed Yam of  Our Land   by  Ozioma Onuzulike, showing (on gray plinth in the middle of the room) Yam Pack, and Yam barn,  Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos, September 14th, 2019,  Photo by  Nnaemezie Asogwa.
4. Installation view of  Seed Yam of  Our Land   by  Ozioma Onuzulike, showing  Iheanyi Onwuegbucha  (Curator) Yam barn,  Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos,  September 14th, 2019, Photo by  Nnaemezie Asogwa

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