Paradox, Nostalgia and Empathy Of The “Beautiful Chaos” Art Exhibition

by Alewa House, published 3 years, 2 months ago

Unarguably, the year 2020 would travel down history’s lane and clinch for itself a space on the hall of fame as one riddled with the most life-changing of events that held the world by its jugular, threatening to split it asunder. Despite the prickly blows that came with the year, it is interesting to see that amidst the groping in the dark, amidst the sprinklings of uncertainties and despair; the ruggedness of hope emanates regardless. Therefore, to commence the new year (2021), the recently concluded Arts Exhibition “Beautiful Chaos” in Jos, Nigeria, proved that in all that the previous year threw in our faces, onus lies on all and sundry to preserve every intricate piece of information; to nurture the feelings of fear, anxiety, and every other human emotions we felt- and most importantly to participate in telling the true stories, and bequeathing down to posterity.

Kenri Tony-Doohwan, "2020", 2020, Ink on paper. Courtesy of the artist.

Kenri Tony-Doohwan, 2020, 2020, Ink on paper. Photo Courtesy of JAGO.

Alewa House, in collaboration with JAGO – Jos Art Gallery Online brought this historic art exhibition curated by Ponchang Kumven to fruition. The art exhibition which opened on the 22nd – 24th of January was themed: “Beautiful Chaos: Disruption, Transformation and Creativity”, and featured artworks inspired by the chaos which riddled the year 2020: COVID-19 pandemic; the 9 month long ASUU strike which kept a large portion of the country’s university students out of school; and the #EndSAR Protests.

Exhibition Flier

"Beautiful Chaos" Art Exhibition Flier. Photo Courtesy Of JAGO.

It is both interesting as well as mind boggling to consider the paradoxical flare with which the exhibition was named: “Beautiful Chaos”. To scratch beyond the surface to the core would reveal that in spite of how chaotic the previous year unfolded, [COVID inclusive], in spite of the misdemeanors that has its claws deep into the Nigerian socio-political space, we see pockets of beauty that reminds us to hang positivity like an ornament around our necks, and that when we reach our lowest, we reinforce and fan the embers of hope.

Plangji Challa, "Beautiful Chaos", 2020, Acrylic On Canvas. Courtesy of the artist.

Plangji Challa, Beautiful Chaos, 2020, Acrylic on Canvas. Photo Courtesy of JAGO.

The exhibition featured 8 artists: Judith Daduut (Young Contemporaries’ 2020 finalist), Plangji Challa, Mangai Dawang, Victor Elayo, Tony Kenri, Rike Christian, Nenman Goki, Nentawe Gokwat, Mala Iwa Gbado Ikaleku. And photographs from 16 Photographers: Lazham Gaina, Zayn Yusuf Ali, Beka Nenzar, Epaphras Obed, Benedict Pawa, Lawunna Yilwada, Martha Datong, Andy Chantu, Victor Atang, Gyang Daweng, Raphael Ogbodo, Amanda Jeremih, Victor Idi Peters, Twamsen Danaan, Emmanuel Morgan Ishaya and Kenneth Obinna. It also included pieces from inspiring amateur artists: Makut Macham, an architect who used the Covid-19 lockdown to reignite his passion for painting, and Holiare Manga, a 500 level medical student from the University of Jos who spent a portion of the ASUU strike to learning how to crochet, and is presently good enough to make crochet pieces for prospective clients.

Exhibition Space

"Beautiful Chaos" Exhibition Space. Photo Courtesy of JAGO.

The exhibition which ran for three days sought to, and did successfully ignite a sense of nostalgia in the minds of people who were part of the #EndSARS protest, and conjure a empathy from people who didn’t experience the #EndSARS protest firsthand. Like most artistic engagements, the exhibition promoted creativity, participation in decision making especially in the continuous effort to build and defend democracy by the citizenry, and most importantly opened minds of exhibition visitors to the positive side of chaos, as an integral part of change opening us to creativity and progressive change.

Exhibition Space

Ponchang Kumven, Curator Of "Beautiful Chaos" Art Exhibition. Photo Courtesy Of JAGO.

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Photo Courtesy Of Sketch.

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"Ladders Of History". Photo Courtesy Of Sketch.

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Photo Courtesy Of JAGO

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Announcement: Video Upload Now Open to Alewa House Content Creators

by Alewa House, published 1 year, 9 months ago

Before now, content creators could only submit video requests via cloud providers to Alewa House by mail unlike for stories and album/singles. This will change starting from today, Alewa House content creators will now be able to upload and sell videos. Content moderation is still not going away anytime soon. This is because the company has a strong intellectual property protection culture.

Secondly, the updates also comes with a better designed dashboard with detailed analytics for each of content creators' digital assets. Alongside is location insight, since it is very important to know where content creators' audiences come from.

analytics dashboard

You will also find a detailed breakdown of your earnings on all your digital assets

earning analytics on alewa house

Our sole aim at Alewa House is to give power to content creators and that is why it is deliberately designed from the onset to allow Content Creators to earn from followers. The first of its kind. Right! The more followers they have, the more money they make. Here is a brief illustration from Singer and Songwriter Edge Golbador:

earning with followers on alewa house

Spread the word to family, relatives and friends that have digital contents that would like to sell or monetize? Spread the opportunity for content creators to earn for life. 


We Need an “Elbow Room”: An Appraisal of Younglan’s "Elbow Room"

by Alewa House, published 2 years, 2 months ago

There is a philosophical argument which proposes that man is a product of his surroundings. The notion argues that the sum of man’s decisions, actions and inclinations are innately imprinted by the impressions he/she has witnessed. Although the counter argument proposes that some persons can transcend the complicated social conditioning of their society. It is inherently difficult to outrun the impact of the experiences that one has grown accustomed to.

Poetry has a way of baring out our impressions of the society. It is a channel that expresses the deepest sense of our vulnerability, our strengths, our fears and even our love. But sometimes, a poetic piece has the power to transport us into a place where we can both reflect and introspect on the choices, the experiences and the decisions that have led us to the moment that we are in.

Younglan’s “Elbow Room” begins with the familiar angst of a character in contradiction. The contradiction arises from the most familiar of places.

The human desire to navigate the pitfalls of the emotions of love and hate.

“Everything you seem to love now

You might just end up hating

And everything you seem to hate now

You might just end up loving

So I am hating the President now,

So that I might just love him later”

Across these few lines, a deeper story unravels.

It is a story that lays its soul bare over the rest of the poem.

A story of the contradictions of man’s experiences.

An experience which in some ways; has grown accustomed to the futility of the system.

When Younglan discourses the society in the way it projects its values, he replays the very plot of the sad society that we are immersed in. He discusses a society where hardwork is constantly being preached, but in hindsight; the most successful individuals are the persons who are steeped in the less than stellar ways of politics.

The contradiction in the experience is thus; while the politicians live a life that is different from the one the masses experience, the masses still lie in awe of the politician who continues to pillage the values of the masses. The politician has no restraint. His lack of restrain, by default creates a sublet of identities. It creates the “collaborators” who are content to wallow in fear and live in the status quo. The second group is the one he describes as the ones that might become “monsters.”

There are other contradictions within the story of the Have and Have Nots that he projects.

For instance, when he talks about getting guns, his answer is thus,

“But if we all get guns

Then we all might be gone soon”

Or when he talks about the state of the poor, he says

“The earth has had enough of the poor man’s blood

These days, it regurgitates it even,

For it thirsts for the blood of these bloodthirsty politicians, so”

Up until this point in the poem, the biggest question had been what direction the poet wanted the story to go to. The end goal was not to just offer up the state of contradictions within our society, or to just highlight the experiences of the masses who suffer inexhaustible hardships while politicians loot, pillage and walk away.

The end goal was something more subtle.

A certain kind of defiance that wiggles its way out of a dilemma.

Younglan projects himself as an outsider on the inside of a society that offers him as much contradictions as the one he battles within himself.

When he plays within the fringes of love and hate at the beginning of the poem, he found himself choosing to decide upon a route that will end in an outcome that feels the most secure.

His decision is to approach the tougher end of the contradiction first.

His experience and the nature of the society he has grown in, makes this a herculean task.

But it is a task he can maneuver because he has found a way.

The way, and in the end, the “safe space”, lies in the manifestation of the people.

Ever since I listened to the poem; my greatest question had been what the elbow room was.

The truth is, the “elbow room” is a free scope. An adequate space for work or operation; when it comes down to it, the “elbow room” is every individual deciding to choose what side of the contradiction they will prefer.

What Younglan has succeeded in showcasing is the binary of society, where action and consequence is deeply visible.

This is the part of the story that we sometimes fail to see. Every line of the poem is in constant conflict with the next because every line is a consequence of the next action. The politician, the collaborator, the masses who may become monsters, they are all deep psychological products of the society that they are familiar with. Their actions and decisions, whether dictated by love or hate, remains inherently dependent on the experiences that they witness.

The impact of that decision will decide how every individual unites under a common protest, a common election. The revolution in the end is for the common man.

The man in the streets may feel imprisoned by the way of his society. That is only for a while. He/she will find his/her free scope. And when he/she does, the revolution will be as they always say “televised.”

“Elbow Room” is not a typical poem that allows you to be outside of the experience. It drags you in because it speaks of a familiar space that we all understand.

From the moment Edge Golbador’s Falsetto warms over the sweet chords at the beginning, and he wails those enchanting cries, you are drawn into the experience that suggest that whatever is being said requires your mind to be at peace.

The society we survive in is burning into its nadir.

From the deepest hooks of oppression, we must find an elbow room to move into our own truths.

Maybe this piece is a rallying call to us all.

What is your elbow room?

Reviewed by Elijah Abuni Peter

Listen or download Elbow Room by Younglan for free.