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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Culture & Society

Nigeria hails waste metal sculptor Popoola for global recognition

From ThisDay · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Nigeria's Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy lauded sculptor Dotun Popoola for transforming waste into art.
  • Popoola's eighth solo exhibition, "Reclaimed Beauty: A Dialogue Between Continents," opened in Abuja, showcasing sculptures made from discarded metal.
  • The ministry plans to develop The Village by Tikera as a creative city, fostering Nigeria's cultural economy and soft power.

Nigeria's Minister of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, celebrated metal sculptor Dotun Popoola for his decade-long practice of transforming waste into art that elevates Nigerian creativity globally. Musawa spoke at the opening of Popoola's eighth solo exhibition, "Reclaimed Beauty: A Dialogue Between Continents," in Abuja.

You have elevated departed materials that have been put to waste into meaning and into something that is culturally significant.

— Hannatu MusawaAt the opening of Dotun Popoola's solo exhibition in Abuja.

"You have elevated departed materials that have been put to waste into meaning and into something that is culturally significant," Musawa stated, noting that Popoola's work has garnered international attention, even being discussed in Spain.

The exhibition, a collaboration between Tikera Africa and the Scrap Art Museum, features large-scale sculptures from repurposed materials, exploring themes of sustainability, transformation, and cultural exchange. Musawa highlighted the exhibition as a model for sustainability and aligned it with the government's agenda to boost Nigeria's cultural economy and soft power.

I was in Spain 24 hours ago and people there were talking about your art.

— Hannatu MusawaHighlighting the international recognition of Dotun Popoola's work.

Following the exhibition tour, Musawa announced a memorandum of understanding to develop The Village by Tikera into a creative city in Abuja, pledging ministry support for infrastructure development. She expressed hope that the exhibition would inspire young people and increase public appreciation for the creative economy, positioning The Village as a key part of Nigeria's ambition to become Africa's cultural hub.

My hope is for as many Nigerians to come and experience the amazing expression of culture, history and creativity that Dotun has shown.

— Hannatu MusawaExpressing her desire for wider public engagement with Popoola's art and the creative economy.

Bayo Omoboriowo, founder of Tikera Africa, described Popoola's exhibition as a perfect fit for the site, which he transformed from neglected land into a creative campus using salvaged materials. He urged creatives to view constraints as opportunities for innovation, citing Popoola as an example of creativity moving from idea to product.

Everything you see here is scrap metal.

— Bayo OmoboriowoDescribing the materials used in the creative campus and Dotun Popoola's exhibition.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ThisDay in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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