FROM photo-finish realism, surrealism, to impressionism and abstract-impressionism, artists, in the last one century, have been injecting more conceptual contents, which, basically, have broadened the art landscape. However, in Ajiboyes People and Places: Nigeria II, which opens at Terra Kulture, Victoria Island, Lagos on March 12, and runs till March 18, 2011, bold attempt is made to wriggle through naturalism, while stirring as much dialogue and radiating conceptual characteristics. Some of the works reflected this conclusion during a preview recently in Lagos.With over 34 years experience in art exhibitions, three solos may not, in numerical term, commiserate with his revered pedigree. However, the artist, ahead of his latest show, warned: Good paintings are not done in a hurry. Art is far more than just poetic titles.Such warning is not, necessarily, an affront on the expressivity of those whose strokes have been described by critics as mere splash of colours; it further stresses the challenge to art connoisseurs and promoters, who wish to draw a line of value between naturalism and others.In his effort at drawing attention to the resilience of naturalism, Ajiboye seemed to have found an ideal subject in the human and habitat elements, hence the title of his latest offering, People and Places: Nigeria II. Its a sequel to the group exhibition titled Josy Ajiboye Art Family held in 2008, which he had with his wife and children, as part of the years independence anniversary. The commonality in the two shows, he explained, is his thoughts on what he described as the glorious years of the country, the challenges of today and perhaps the prospects of tomorrow.Some of the images such as Yoruba Palace Maiden, Ori Olokun, Flashback, Boy in Fulani Costume and Fulani Girl extol the cultural value, while others remind the people of the political gains and the volatile pasts. In fact, Religious Politics, a conceptual piece warns that fundamentalism of any faith is as dangerous as the action being depicted on his canvas. Ajiboye, in this piece raises an alarm as he implores the concept of a burning cigarette, placed against the fragility of matchsticks.The volatility for Nigeria, he warned is as close as the burning cigarette and the matchstick box; it could explode and consume the nation.Quite of note is that Boy in Fulani Costume and Fulani Girl make one wonders: when did Nigerians lose the sense of unity in diversity These works, Ajiboye, explained, are memories of his childhood in Erimope Ekiti.Despite the near-magical and painstaking rendition invested in traditional realism painting, the market value, in Nigeria, through such outlets as exhibitions and art auctions, seems to be lower compared to impressionistic and conceptual works. In fact, most recent art exhibitions placed emphasis more on conceptual rendition. And for art auctions, top sales have been dominated by non-naturalism work. Behaviour of Nigerian art collectors, indeed, were not removed from others across Europe and Americas as recent sales suggested that non-naturalism, either in sculptures or paintings dominate worlds top ten sales.Indeed, masterstrokes of great artists such as Rembrandt, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo of which Ajiboyes work radiates, remain resilience, beyond art market value of auction and exhibitions.A typical example is Da Vincis Mona Lisa: a portraiture painting of just 30 x 21 in., which, arguably, has been the main attraction at the Louvre Museum, in Paris for over a century. And when Columbia Pictures, the producers of the controversial Hollywood movie, The Da Vinci Code paid as much as $2m to Louvre just to film inside the gallery where the Mona Lisa painting is mounted, the message was clear that the value of an art piece transcends the purchase via regular art market.Ajiboyes works such as Ant-Hill, Aiye Koto (Parrot), which are expected to be on this show as well as some of his past works have the prospects of resilience value of the renaissance masters. African artist, by antecedence, Ajiboye argues, has what it takes to rule the world. He cited the example of one of the works for the show: a reproduction of the famous sculpture Ori-olokun, which he renders in painting.As passionate as he is about representational, the cartoonist and graphic artist in him would make the show accommodate some works that are more conceptual and idealistic. These works, he assured, could include some abstracts, possibly, few of my cartoons.For an artist who eliminates movement of brushings on canvas, it appeared that his image as a cartoonist has taken much of his glorious career.Ajiboye became a household name as a cartoonist whose work Josy Ajiboye on Sunday featured, weekly, on the moribund Daily Times titles.As a boy, his love for painting led to training from a donor programme, Sudan Interior Mission (SIM) and further education in Commercial Art at Yaba College of Technology, Yaba, Lagos.Ajiboye had his first exhibition at the Gong Gallery, Lagos in 1977 and followed it up in 1979 with another one sponsored by the French Cultural Centre, but held at the French Embassy, among other shows.His last solo show was held at the Didi Musuem, Victoria Island, Lagos in 2002.He had earlier worked with African Challenge, Todays Challenge, Yoruba Challenge and Champion Magazine published in French in Cote divoire the then (Ivory Coast) and a Number of other Sudan Interior Mission Publications before he resigned his appointment in 1968.
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