Obiora Udechukwu
Encyclopedia
Obiora Udechukwu is a Nigeria
n painter
and poet.
Born in Onitsha
in 1946 to parents from Agulu
in Anambra State, Nigeria. He studied for one year at Ahmadu Bello University
before serving in the Biafran War. He completed his bachelor's degree
in fine arts in 1972, receiving his master's in 1977; both were from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He is recognised as a member of the Nsukka group
of artists.
Udechukwu frequently incorporates uli
into his work, and in the 1970s he began to incorporate nsibidi
into his work as well. Many of his paintings and prints depict ordinary people; his wartime service also inspired pieces which depicted the great suffering that he saw. Udechukwu's later works have gradually become more abstract
.
Udechukwu is also active as a teacher; among his pupils at Nsukka were Tayo Adenaike
and Olu Oguibe
.
Obiora is the head of the Fine Arts Department at St. Lawrence University.
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
and poet.
Born in Onitsha
Onitsha
Onitsha is a city, a commercial, educational, and religious center and river port on the eastern bank of the Niger river in Anambra State, southeastern Nigeria....
in 1946 to parents from Agulu
Agulu
Agulu is a large town in Anambra State, Nigeria. It is located in Anaocha Local Government Area. It is home to the famous Agulu lake. Agulu has produced a lot of eminent personalities, amongst them are the present Governor of Anambra State Mr. Peter Obi, others include Dora Akunyili the past...
in Anambra State, Nigeria. He studied for one year at Ahmadu Bello University
Ahmadu Bello University
Ahmadu Bello University is the largest university in Nigeria and second largest in Africa, second only to Cairo University, Egypt. It is situated in Zaria. It was founded on October 4, 1962 as the University of Northern Nigeria....
before serving in the Biafran War. He completed his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in fine arts in 1972, receiving his master's in 1977; both were from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He is recognised as a member of the Nsukka group
Nsukka group
The Nsukka group is the name given to a group of Nigerian artists who were associated with the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in the 1970s. They are known, as a group, for working to revive the practice of uli and incorporate its designs into contemporary art using media such as acrylic paint,...
of artists.
Udechukwu frequently incorporates uli
Uli (design)
Uli is the name given to the traditional designs drawn by the Igbo people of Nigeria. Uli drawings are strongly linear and do not have deep perspective; they do, however, balance positive and negative space. Designs are frequently asymmetrical, and are often painted spontaneously...
into his work, and in the 1970s he began to incorporate nsibidi
Nsibidi
Nsibidi is a system of symbols indigenous to what is now southeastern Nigeria that is apparently ideographic, though there have been suggestions that it includes logographic elements...
into his work as well. Many of his paintings and prints depict ordinary people; his wartime service also inspired pieces which depicted the great suffering that he saw. Udechukwu's later works have gradually become more abstract
Abstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
.
Udechukwu is also active as a teacher; among his pupils at Nsukka were Tayo Adenaike
Tayo Adenaike
Tayo Adenaike is a Nigerian painter.A native of Idanre, Adenaike is of Yoruba parentage, and studied art with Obiora Udechukwu at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Here he received his bachelor's degree in 1979 and his master's of fine arts in 1982. Professionally, Adenaike has mainly worked in...
and Olu Oguibe
Olu Oguibe
Olu Oguibe is an artist and public intellectual. Professor of Art and African-American Studies and interim Director of the Institute for African American Studies at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, Oguibe is a senior fellow of the Vera List Center for Art and Politics at the New School, New...
.
Obiora is the head of the Fine Arts Department at St. Lawrence University.
Further reading
- Simon Ottenberg, Sources and themes in the art of Obiora Udechukwu, in African Arts, Summer 2002 http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0438/is_2_35/ai_94010404/pg_1