Archive Fever: Memories, Nostalgia, Reflections

Chikaogwu Kanu

In his quest for a strong artistic voice as a burgeoning sound artist, Peter Okotor’s recent debut solo exhibition – which held from October 1 to October 25, 2021 – explores the Nigeria’s troubling past, using sound installation as a medium of expression. The exhibition, which took place at the Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA), Lagos, entitled Table of Paradox, is an installation of archival materials that speaks to postcolonial history of Nigeria from the sociopolitical perspective.

The installation which comprises turntables, “reconstructed photographed album cover and original vinyl of songs whose lyrics are of everyday life struggles”, gives one a sense of being immersed in archive in a physical sense different from Derrida’s concept of power. This whole configuration is juxtaposed with “hope-filled speeches [of leaders of the independence generation] that set Nigerians alight with joys and celebrations of the startling event heralding self-governance.” Recall that Nigeria became a postcolonial state after her independence in 1960. The moment was greeted with so much hope for a blissful future and a great sense of responsibility as captured by the independence address of the Prime Minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa.

However, this expectation was dashed shortly after, as the political crisis that ensued following the first military coup and counter coup of January and July 1966 respectively culminated in a bloody Nigeria-Biafra civil war of 1967-1970. From this point, things have continued to degenerate in such a manner that provokes several disturbing questions and conjectures among the citizenry in the quest for a solution to the nation’s intractable problems.

This same concern was also shared by the artist owing to the conversation he had with the father, which according to him, inspired this show. The conversation reads in part, “…my father told me that they ate chicken [as students] in the university. ‘Chicken, in university, Nigeria?’ the artist wondered. “So, as the conversation progressed, I pondered what went wrong if that was their reality.”

Peter was probably shocked as this no longer happens in the nation’s universities of his current generation. Consequently, this exhibition which interrogates how this dismal situation resonates through the contemporary sociopolitical realities also calls for a sober reflection on the way forward for a dream Nigeria of the founding fathers.

Influenced by this conversation, Peter, therefore, invites the audience into his creative space to share with him why things are not just working. So, the “eating chicken in the university” narrative now becomes a metaphor in the context of this exhibition to make sense of the dismal state of nation’s sociopolitical structure which is also a reflection of the current gloomy state of the Nigerian universities where not only that the chicken is no longer being eaten, but incessant strike by lecturers due to poor salary structure and lack of adequate funding, among other woes, have become the order of the day.

This miserable state of the nation aptly informs the show’s theme song: “Which way Nigeria?” A question Sonny Okosun poses in his 1984 hit song – 24 years after the independence, and 38 years since the song was released. A question that still begs for answer as the worsening condition of Nigeria seems to defy all possible solutions.

So, the whole idea of the interactive exhibition is to get the audience talking and thinking about the challenges that have bedeviled Nigeria since independence, perhaps for a possible solution. Consequently, the choice of archival music and turntables to “evoke people’s thoughts on history and social values” is on point. This conversation is, therefore, made possible by listening to the selected songs that speak to the present woes of our nation using an obsolete turntable. Though the only functional turntable is the one playing the theme song “Which way Nigeria” by Sonny Okosun, each turntable installation has an accompanying Quick Response Code (QR Code) that gives the audience access to the songs it supposed to be playing, for critical reflections. The selected songs all seem to clearly capture the soul and spirit of the message it is trying to communicate.

A message of long-desired hope and good life that has consistently remained a mirage to the Nigerian citizens – an age-old expectation indeed. And again, using antiquated material collections as a work of art to speak to age-old intractable national issues in a notion of contemporary display in an ambient gallery space is not only apt, it also succinctly suggests resilience in the face of daunting challenges. This spirit is simply what we need at such a time as this in the sociopolitical life of our nation. This is because I believe that there is still hope for Nigeria, and Nigeria can still be great again. So, as we reflect on the sweet memories of the ideals of the founding fathers very nostalgically, we should also bear in mind that it is still possible to make those memories a reality. However, we need all hands-on deck if we must make it happen.

The show is indeed a great patriotic effort by the artist in view of the fact that most citizens have apparently given up on the nation. So, kudos to Peter for a job well done. This notion of patriotism probably informed the opening of the exhibition on October 1, the Nigeria’s independence anniversary celebration so as to possibly engage the audience in a national debate for a way forward.

Peter Okotor had his professional training at Kelani Abass Studio (2013 – 2016). He is an Access Bank Art X 2019 Prize Finalist, and currently Curatorial Assistant at the Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA) Lagos. Okotor’s oeuvre is reminiscent of Emeka Ogbo – a Nigerian-born, Berlin-based artist, who also engages the same subject with the theme: “The Ambivalence of 1960’’ (2012/2014). However, while Ogbo, the pioneer Nigerian sound artist explores “collage of audio excerpts from some prominent speeches made during the 1960 independence celebrations, Okotor on his own part adopts the juxtaposition of archival sound materials, and digital technology to further confront these realities.”

• Kanu, a PhD student of Art history at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, writes from Lagos.