The artist Samson Ogiamien lives and works in Graz. He comes from the capital of the kingdom of Benin, in Nigeria. Through his family line he belongs to the mythical dynasty of the Ogiamiens and also the guild of royal bronze casters. Educated in Benin City and Graz, he is as connected to African tradition as much as western reality.

Performative, process-oriented work guides his concept of art. This means that exhibitions such as this are a snapshot within a project structure that defines the artefact as part of a process of mediation (workshop, performance). His ‘commemorative heads’ portray Nigerians who died in Austria: Sofia, Kennedy and Lucky.

These objects, however, are also a focus for universal post-colonial issues, with a particular position of understanding art as a connecting element within the context of globalisation.

In the field of tension between the two cultures the artist senses an emerging identity activated by the ethnic, geographical and cultural differences between African traditions and those of the western world.

Texts by Barbara Plankensteiner and Günther Holler-Schuster

56 Pages, German/English