Was in a big city hall and ask, is the art scene neighbors what they know about Aniekan Udofia. One could list the 33 years, among the most talented visual artists of his generation, with national attention for his work in hip-hop magazines such as XXL, Vibe and The Source.
And it could locally, and some even baptized by Nigerian artist as "the face of the artistic movement that DC political themes with a mix of hip-hop aesthetic." But no matter what you hearAniekan will tell you that they are only scratching the surface of what he really is.
To begin with, meet his parents, Dr. George and Edna Udofia. They came to the United States from Nigeria for the school, while civil war raged in his homeland of Nigeria, Biafra (the war lasted from July 6, 1967 to January 15, 1970). Nigeria's first in the United States to American universities to visit, with the intention of returning home, Kalu Ogbaa writes in his book "The Americans Nigerian. But for the first timeThe history of Nigeria, the civil war "was the reason for immigration and more students from war-torn eastern Nigeria cases simply did the right thing for their immigration to the United States." So, George and Edna law and nursing, respectively, studied at the universities of Washington, DC He sat down and began a family. Aniekan, the second of five children and the first child of the family, was born November 26, 1975.
Ogbaa, a professor of English and Africana Studies at Southern ConnecticutState University, continued: "The dismal socio-economic and political conditions in Nigeria, which have their civil war so intolerable that all East Germans wanted to leave the country." Until 1980, the number of Nigerian immigrants in the United States has grown to 25,528. In addition, guided the development of the military dictatorships of abuse of power and denial of human rights also to a mass exodus of trained personnel in the institutions' s University of Nigeria. By 1990 the number of Nigerians isU.S. has more than doubled, to 55,350. But instead he decided tendency, George and Edna, their children from their birth in northwest DC Beat Akwa Ibom State in Nigeria in 1982.
Aniekan was a 7 at the time of travel, the Ibibio people, one of more than 250 ethnic groups in Nigeria - the three most common are Yoruba, Ibo (or Igbo) and Hausa-Fulani. The hotel is located in south-eastern Nigeria, especially in Cross River state, growers Ibibio rainforestYams, taro and cassava. Export mainly palm oil and palm kernel, but also for their skillful carving observed.
Back in Nigeria, George has taught French at school, and Edna was a health educator. They had high hopes for his first son, Aniekan. "When is a patriarchal society, children, and training, leadership qualities, strong and assertive, which will allow them to have inherited the leadership role of fathers at home, development, fathers should die or how old, sick,or null, "Ogbaa. In addition, he writes:" It should be the needs of their family members, providers and their safety and emotional and financial protection at all times. "According to Aniekan, his parents thought he was destined to attend college and major, in practice little more than art, or get a job and work with their hands. Instead, he embraced a move abroad.
Growing up in High Life, a musical genre that emerged in Ghana in 1900before it was finally spread to Sierra Leone, Nigeria and other West African countries since 1920 Aniekan Ibo Highlife innovator with legends like Sonny Okosun and Victor Olaiya, a singer and trumpet player Yoruba family. But the hip-hop conquered the then 17 years of living high in a way that could not. "It 'the expression of it ... Even with Slick Rick, according to legend was," recalls Aniekan. 'It is the rap song, but it's like ... the art of twisting his words. " (He likened Kool G Rap feel aartist precise language, on "Tetris on High-Speed"). Aniekan first encounter with the art form was created by a friend who handed him a cassette Kid 'N Play in 1992. Other meetings were with friends who have VHS Yo! MTV Raps from their relatives in the United States "We have a VCR," says Aniekan. "It 'was as if someone had been on the cover, then we would all be 15-deep in the cradle of this person to hang out, watch videos and get all the hype and tried to like the kids in the discussionVideo. "
At the same time, record shops began to appear throughout Uyo, a city which was capital of Akwa Ibom State September 23, 1987. "They had the DJ spots and how they put these big speakers outside was," says Aniekan. "That's where we used to hang out." Other hang-outs, barbers, which consisted mainly in a closet-sized room with a chair, a sign, a comb and some have been Clippers. Some barbers were lucky to its humble origins to become a franchise do. SuchBarber, "Big Stuff", who had three shops in the commercial sector in Uyo.
At this time is essential for hair for the usual local artists, price lists and posters for their businesses. Big Stuff commissioned an artist who has completely changed the life Aniekan's. This budding hip-hop artist would head to understand the power of expression through images. Was "There's a man of Arabic name ... It would be shit and you just want the piece [surprised look]," says Aniekan."He had a lot of creativity." He recalls involving Arab-style hip-hop, with boys in hooded sweatshirts and poses dressed in the fashion of the time of travel. "The style was so mad, as he did." Everyone has done has been different. "There was a price list, where a man had painted a finger to his mouth, while another has a price list in his hand that looked like a hole in the wall. Another was the illustration of the three guys outside of a well-struck - a man on a phone, the other onlook-out, while the third has a price list from the well. "His imagination was just a bit 'crazy', says Aniekan. "Crazy!"
However, his hopes have been developed for a mentor in the Arab world dashed when they met in 1995. Up to this point Aniekan walk with a sketchbook in search of work, the Arabs would be represented. Would be "I'm trying to practice and copying at home," said Aniekan. Noted the interest of the young artist gave a piece Big Stuff Aniekan Arabic from his shop to take home andStudy. "So I went and studied and tried to understand how to use color, what kind of paint was used by him." ( "It was watercolors or colored pencils?" He asked) are. That was between 1994 and 1997, was his "study period" mentioned.
It 'the time has practiced photography "realistic" drawing style. He experimented until he came with his own style to draw faces with colored pencils and ink, and then gluing on a different background. He was anxious, if it led Arab Big Stuffhouse in 1995. "When I saw the last time, I was pretty groupie-fied," says Aniekan. "I want to meet him, and I'm very shy." The magic quickly faded when he said he had promised Aniekan Arabs to draw something. "He never really do. And 'just made me go in there and always blows me off."
Turned into discouragement, that the determination and put a man on a mission to discover how the Arabs did. This process has slowly made a name for himself AniekanDrawing styles haircut and sell in hairdressing. He started to come with their own concepts for posters barber. In a previous creation, took a table and put a hand to cut the hair with an arrow in the direction of the barber chair. "People should look down from the mountain and a hairdresser would know he was right," recalls Aniekan. In return, the barber gave him $ 50 for the poster. Aniekan was to get his name, such as Arabic, all Uyo. Earlyhas become a sought after artists in the local hairdressers and asked, "Yo, you could give me some hair, or anything else."
His popularity was not enough to impress his parents, to suppress satisfy their desires for him, his office as the first child. "I went to technical schools [and] vocational schools, have tried to change my mind," says Aniekan. But wherever he went, he saw people so passionate about their fields of his art. During the 17-year battle with his parents, wroteLetters to an aunt who lives in DC After several matches, they have accepted his request, giving him a plane ticket to come and try to reach the U.S. in the arts industry. He came to DC in 1999 at the age of 24 Since he was here, he captured national attention of designers and magazines - not the new fish splashing in the national art scene. He has created designs for And 1, take an urban society, athletics, and was the premiere artist for the DC-based NativeUrban Clothing Line language.
In addition, his works in various publications, such as urban Rime, Elemental, pulse DC and 151 out Frank. His illustrations also graced the covers of albums by hip-hop, as acclaimed by critics and Flex Matthew, and the covers of books and magazines hip-hop.
Joined in 2004, works of art Aniekan Mbilashaka (AM) radio, a group of four to lose 10 pictures artists and a DJ. They are charged with enterprise customers to create a 7 x 5 artistsInterpretation of their logo in front of a live audience. As part of this group, Aniekan worked on projects for clients like Red Bull, Heineken, Honda, Current TV, Timberland and Adidas.
He uses hip-hop feel issues such as social critique, are questions that persist, such as religion, sex (the wars, "homosexuality is right or wrong? Who to choose?") And racism. Even the American consumer. In one of his pieces at issue, former President George W. Bush is in manyis holding machine guns. The shirt: "Got oil?"
Some of his work has been controversial enough to draw criticism from viewers, and some galleries have also asked to take his pictures. Even worse is his style of "telling the truth" can be estimated most people. In the month of June in an editorial review Rhome Anderson (aka DJ Stylus respect) Aniekan a local treasure. "From the city walls in his improvised live painting of musical events, Udofia is as much a fixture on the city in artScene as a DJ, singers, producers and musicians, "Anderson writes on washingtonpost.com." Commissioned as part of words, Beats and Life, "Remixing the Art of Social Change" teach-in, Udofia was a completely new range of handmade pieces. "
In an afternoon of Tuesday Aniekan is to work intensively on a new Commission. His one-bedroom apartment on 17th Street NW Room for his goods at home and study. The border and go to a comic book neatly stacked next to the cross stashvarious hip-hop and art magazines. Look around and see a work-in-progress is set on an easel in the middle of his kitchen - works of art on the walls along the entrance of his Cabinet and in his bedroom. His last show, the disease 3, is to dissident on H Street NW in June. Aniekan liked the show as a departure from his hip-hop themed works. The reactions of his colleagues' varied. "It 'was good and bad. There were some people who were like," I do not feel thatAgain, a color, a color-theme, crazy things, "he recalls." But then there are people who were like, 'Wow, this really is drugs. "It' a track and I think I need more susceptible to this page. "
Just looking at his kitchen, a reporter noticed a photograph of Fela Kuti, the Nigerian multi-instrumentalist musician and composer. In the chart, take three Felas different in different colors - blue watch a black-white Fela Fela, who is playing the saxophone. In the background aSilver Fela raises his arms in victory, by an overview of Africa. The question whether Nigeria or the elements of his tribe Ibibio always looks their way into his paintings, Aniekan up with a sketch carefully consider his answer. "If I chose to do some kind of problem house", as the development of cultural events, 3 opened in April in Wisconsin Wisconsin Avenue NW Overlook, "which when I put in a rule by train, where I come from" says Aniekan. "It's more of aChoice. "
It 'a choice that he believes that musicians and other artists the right, should not have labeled cultural sell-out, or worst practice. Take advantage of Fela, Afrobeat pioneer and human rights advocate. Not gone as a political dissident, as announced today. "He was in the music ... it started with High Life, which has grown," says Aniekan. When Fela discovered that some social and economic issues were not addressed, his music was his voice - "when he startedjust beat the President "and corrupt politicians." That led him to another level, "says Aniekan. He wrote not only for Nigeria and what he has written almost in Africa, himself and the world. "
This relationship with the world is that what appears Aniekan with his art. He knows if he puts his art in an area of "African art", which would reduce the scope of his work. The same, if only they were not "hip hop" paintings. So what are you doing? He pushes himself in each picture.Aniekan said: "As a visual artist, is for people to see your progress."
Tom Yum
