Enotie Ogbebor: From Eden to Ecocide: A Tale of Human Impact

A new installation by multidisciplinary artist Enotie Ogbebor is being exhibited amongst existing MAA displays, linking contemporary life with ethnographic collections.

Enotie Ogbebor has long been fascinated with art, history and culture. At an early age he was inspired by watching family members working as bronze casters. Enotie is a long-time friend of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, having worked closely with the University through the Benin Dialogue Group towards the return of looted artefacts from Benin City to Nigeria. A renowned international artist, his Nosona Studios in Benin City has been a thriving hub where young artists from Edo State and beyond have been mentored, and was the venue for one of the community exhibitions developed through the Re:Entanglements project in 2019.

The image features three dinosaur and man's evolution from a crouching ape to a woman holding a mobile phone.

Painting titled ‘From Eden to Ecocide: A Tale of Human Impact’, 2023 by Enotie Ogbebor. MAA 2023.18.1.

Enotie Ogbebor’s research with MAA focused on themes of cultural and environmental loss and exploitation, which he has explored in a triptych titled "From Eden to Ecocide: A Tale of Human Impact" that traces the evolving relationship between humans, animals and the environment in his home state. He has been inspired both by the collections and spaces at MAA where traces of the complex relationship between people and planet are present yet often hidden, as well as the research that led to MAA’s recent exhibition on Colour: Art, Science & Power.

As part of the project TAKING CARE - Ethnographic and World Cultures Museums as Spaces of Care, Enotie Ogbebor is the second artist in residence at MAA. Both artists have engaged with MAA and the Museum's collections through a series of visits, leading to interventions and exhibitions which will feature in the Museum's galleries over a period of approximately a year in each case.

The image shows a forest scene with two monkeys, crocodiles, three ibis on a branch, butterflies, a lion, an elephant, a fish and a leopard.

Painting titled ‘From Eden to Ecocide: A Tale of Human Impact’, 2023 by Enotie Ogbebor. MAA 2023.18.2.

“[The artwork] traces the prehistoric, historic, colonial and postcolonial linkages that has led to the devastation of the environment using Okomu National Park as a case study while channelling similar circumstances globally.”

- Enotie Ogbebor

The painting reflects on how such relationships are concealed and revealed in the museum and elsewhere. It prompts and demands from the viewer a prolonged and questioning attention that in turn provokes questions about the displays and the institution as a whole.

The image shows a deforested and pollutred cityscape overlooked by vultures, with crows, airplanes, and a red road with vehicles.

Painting titled ‘From Eden to Ecocide: A Tale of Human Impact’, 2023 by Enotie Ogbebor. MAA 2023.18.3.

The completed artwork was presented to MAA staff at a seminar on Monday 15 May and will be installed in the Museum’s Andrews Gallery, opposite the Benin display, in the summer to coincide with Enotie’s solo exhibition at the British Museum. MAA is grateful to Enotie, the Taking Care project, the Cambridge Rivers Project and to Corpus Christi College who hosted Enotie and provided studio space during his time in Cambridge.

Artist biography

Enotie Ogbebor was born in Benin City. He studied Statistics and Economics at the University of Benin and is a self-taught multidisciplinary artist. He is a recognised authority on Benin court art and has recently completed a residency at The British Museum. Enotie is based in Benin City and Lagos. The work exhibited at MAA were made in Cambridge.

The artist stands to the right of three artworks in the museum's gallery.

Triptych titled ‘From Eden to Ecocide: A Tale of Human Impact’, 2023 by Enotie Ogbebor. MAA 2023.18.1-3

Taking Care and co-funded by the Creative Europe project logos