Nigerian Artist - Chris Ofili - Causes Furore In New York
Adey Oyenuga
Nigerian artist causes furore in New York
>From Laolu Akande, New York
A painting by London-based Nigerian Artist, Chris Ofili, is
currently generating political and religious furore in New
York city. The painting is of Virgin Mary in black skin, with
a breast made of elephant dung.
Pitching Republican New York Mayor Rudy Guilliani against
United States First Lady Hillary Clinton of the Democratic
Party, who are set to lock horns in next year's election to
the city's senatorial seat, the painting is currently being
exhibited by the Brooklyn museum. Gulliani had threatened to
stop the $7 million subsidy the city gives the museum if its
management puts the painting and other art forms up for the
exhibition.
On Saturday, the museum went ahead in New York to exhibit the
work of the British-based Nigerian artist, drawing the most
intense controversy: opposition from the religious right and
conservative politicians; but tolerance from the liberal
democratic groups, politicians and art enthusiasts.
Mrs. Clinton said last week that the Mayor was wrong to deny
the museum its subsidy because the management of the museum
defied him by going on with the exhibition called "Sentation."
According to her, it is better to let the people decide the
fate of the exhibition by choosing to attend or not.
On the first day of the exhibition, no fewer than 9,500 people
paid $9.7 cents each to witness it. By 5 p.m. on Sunday, some
4,000 had shown up - waiting in line for long minutes to see
the exhibition. The turnout was said to be the largest in the
museum's 175-year history.
But as the "Sensation" (the title-name of the exhibition)
recorded such success, the New York Mayor suspended the city's
subsidy and instituted proceedings to evict the museum from
its premises. He argued that it was wrong for the museum to
charge a fee to admit people to a public building. The museum
management has since gone to court to challenge the moves of
the Mayor, and to particularly restore its funding.
The contention over the painting of the Nigerian artist,
includes the sexual connotation the drawing of "Holy Mary," as
the drawing shows a black Madonna with a breast made of
elephant dung painting and its surrounding by pieces of
pornographic magazines.
Even though some art enthusiasts say the painting actually
venerates the Blessed Virgin, because elephant dung is a
symbol of growth in African culture, Catholics say the
painting is blasphemous.
Outside of the museum was filled on Saturday by those
supporting the painting and those opposed to it. But the most
vociferous were the Catholic women who held up placards
saying: "We are the soldiers of Mary", and others reciting
aloud the "Hail Mary" prayers. There were also those who
insisted that the painting and its exhibition was only a show
of freedom of speech, and that anyone opposed to it should
simply not go to see it.
Catholic Cardinal of New York, John O'Connor who had actively
opposed the exhibition because of the painting of Holy Mary,
on Sunday, thanked those Catholics who wrote to the Mayor in
protest. He stressed that "Holy Mary is our blessed mother",
describing the painting as an attack on religion.
But Ofili, 31, who has a Masters from the Royal College of
Arts in London, is himself a Catholic. He was an altar boy,
and still attends church. He was born in Manchester, and has
reported in The New York Times. Ofili won a prestigious yearly
art award recently, the Turner Award, with a prize amount of
$32,000. Last year, he sold one of his paintings in London for
$36,052.
Commenting on the furore his 1996 work has generated, the
artist said: "It all seems very distant and confusing to me "
It's like a play, and someone I got mentioned in the script. I
think there's some bigger agenda here."
His explanation of the painting on Holy Mary was that "I don't
feel as though I have to defend it. The people who are
attacking this painting are attacking their own
interpretation, not mine. You never know what's going to
offend people, and I don't feel it's my place to say any
more."
The use of elephant dung is usually prominent in Ofili's works
for which he is called "the elephant man" in artistic circle
in London. But the use of the elephant dung is, according to
the artist, a cultural reference to his African heritage.
-- THE GUARDIAN --