Udechukwu

Like Okeke, Obiora Udechukwu began his formal art training at Zaria. However, because of the organized violence that was being used against the Igbo people, he left Zaria in the north and made his way to the University of Nigeria at Nsukka in the south. While there, the Republic of Biafra was declared independent of Nigeria and civil war ensued. Udechukwu the artist, was an active participant in the war efforts in many different ways at different stages.

It had a deep and everlasting effect on young Udechukwu. He was affected by the sights of starving people, innocents blown apart by the continual bombings, and the crowds of refugees who were routinely displaced by the shrinking front lines.

Nightsoilman-1964 Oil on Board

Udechukwu has done several works of art on the Nightsoilman theme during his life. It seems to be a symbol of what has happened to Nigeria. Nightsoilmen are one of the jobs that became necessary because of Nigerian urbanization. Nightsoilmen worked at night gathering the sewage from latrines and buckets behind homes and took it out of the city to be disposed of. Because of the nature of their work and its low wages these people were at the bottom of the social ladder. Their children were routinely made fun of by others at school. The dramatic lighting gives the painting a sense of mystery.

Silent Faces at the Crossroads-1967 Oil on Board

The hunched forms, down turned heads, and cool colors enhance the feeling of hopelessness of the subject. The silhouetted houses with turrets in the background place this image in northern Nigeria, and shows Igbo refugees fleeing their homes.

The war experience heightened his awareness of the frailty, faults, and cares of humanity. He recorded it all in his art during this time although only a few pieces survived. His experiences still continue to affect his work.

Blue Figures (Refugees)-1968 Oil on Board

The elongated, gaunt figures in this painting stress the idea of suffering and starvation. They wear no clothing and their bones stick out at sharp angles. The red background brings to mind the fiery destruction of war.

The Exiles (Facing the Unknown)-1973 Woodcut on Paper

The man and woman have rings of stress around their eyes and he places his left had protectively on his wife's shoulder, holding her close. The sun shines bright and harsh behind them. Udechukwu has used the lines in this print expressively. His concern is about the lack of responsibility shown by the ruling elite who are the cause of tragedy, the consequences of which are felt by the anonymous masses.

After the end of the war he was able to focus on finding his own unique style that would be the voice of what he wished to say. He went back to school at Nsukka after the war and, under the influence of Okeke, he began to develop his own way of incorporating the uli tradition into his art. However, he has continually reassessed the direction of his work throughout his career and has taken it far beyond its initial uli concentration. During the 1970s he was also influenced by two other sources. He saw the work of Sudanese artist Ibrahim el Salahi and was impressed with his calligraphic style. He was also introduced to Chinese li painting on trips to England and the United States in the 1970s. He felt an affinity for the way it treated space and line, and rhythm and movement, with a feeling of spontaneity. He immediately saw the connection with the concepts of uli. He has also added another Nigerian tradition, called nsibidi, to his work. In 1977 he began to use this extensively in combination with the uli . The mirror has become his favorite nsibidi motif because a mirror always reflects the truth of appearances.

Nsibidi began in eastern Nigeria but has surfaced in Southeastern Igbo. This is the artistic code, used by a men's secret society called Ekpe, to communicate with other members. It is found on ceremonial cloth, walls of shrines, and on secret society buildings, clothing, and objects. It's symbols are often about emotions and social relationships.

His war related art continued up until the 1980s. In more recent years he has increasingly used his work as a way to express social and political criticism. Nigeria has experienced much economic strife. It is the largest and technically the wealthiest country in West Africa, but is economically very top heavy. In the 1980s, the discovery of oil off the coast of Nigeria promised to bring money and great economic improvements to the country. What happened instead was extortion by political leaders, irresponsibility on the part of oil companies, and great suffering felt by the populations most closely affected by the oil discovery. With the continual political unrest throughout his life, he has tried to communicate with others the concerns and frustrations he has for his country and his people.

Road to Abuja-1982 Pen and Ink

This drawing shows many different types of people migrating to the new capital of Nigeria, hoping to gain from it. There are businessmen and women, workers, and even a dead person in the foreground, fallen on the way. It shows both sides of the Nigerian people: the affluent and the poor. Udechukwu has used very fluid lines to suggest the motion of the column of people. Only enough information is drawn in to give the essence of the figures.

Chameleon-1985 Softground Etching

This etching shows three faces in the foreground, dressed to represent the three main cultural and political groups of Nigeria, Igbo, Yoruba, and Hausa. With a background based on uli murals, there is a chameleon above the men's heads, drawn more symbolic than realistic. Its tail is wrapped around the masses in the background. As the chameleon changes its appearance, so politicians change their beliefs and actions.

Fisherbird-1985 Linocut on Paper

There is a fish in the lower left hand corner, a dangling fish hook, an nsibidi mirror motif with a fish inside, and a bird at the top of the print. It refers to the idea that it is only the patient person who catches the fish.

In the 1990s he began to use acrylics with scraffito (scratching marks into the wet paint) as his primary medium. His imagery has indicated an increasing interest in nature with particular attention paid to the Nigeria seasons and the Nsukka landscape.

Spirit in Ascent-1992 Acrylic on Board

This shows extreme use of the scraffito in the parallel line patterns, an nsibidi mirror with a fish inside, and several uli spirals.

Udummili (Rainy Season)-1993 Acrylic on Canvas

The large area of green is symbolic of the rainy season. The water brought by the rain settles at the bottom of the canvas, feeding the brown earth mounds for growing yams. The scraffito in the greens and blue are nsibidi motifs. Above the earth is a rainbow of blue, yellow and red. The white circle toward the top represents the moon and has a face scratched into the surface. To its right is a large fish with a blue spiral below it.

Udechukwu took up Okeke's role upon that man's retirement in 1986 as teacher and head of the art department there. He has, in turn, taught and influenced a new generation of artists who are using uli as a means to create a contemporary Nigerian artistic statement.

To Keep Nigeria One...-1997

The federal government of Nigeria's wartime slogan "To keep Nigeria one is a task that must be done" is juxtaposed with Wole Soyinka's postwar reply "To keep Nigeria one, justice must be done."

In 1997 he was imprisoned for several weeks by the Nigerian government. Not long after he moved to the United States, but returns to Nigeria every year to maintain his connection with his homeland.

"My artistic response to the African condition has been read as an incisive critique of irresponsible leadership."