By
Tajudeen Sowole
Rains
of applause and great commendations from admirers who filled a Convention Centre
hall at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos during the 10 th
anniversary of Terra Kulture, confirmed the organisation's success story.
More interesting, the Terra Kulture as a
facility and centre for promotion of arts and culture almost lost its shine of
the celebration to the flood of attention received by the founder, Mrs Bolanle
Austen-Peters. One moment, it was all about the founder and Terra Kulture’s
success story as a cultural facility as Femi Lijadu opened the event with his
prepared speech, which was followed by a documentary. The next minutes, an
Austen-Peters' image as an individual whose concept of Nigeria's leading
cultural centre has blossomed beyond imagination took over the entire event.
Clearly, the wavelength of the 10th anniversary of Terra Kulture indicated the
iconic image, which Austen-Peters has made from being a great manager of an
unusual business, at least in Nigerian context. Terra Kulture is a phenomenon
in arts and culture facility management, so suggested the hall-filled of
guests, which included dignitaries such as the Olusgun Aganga, the Minister of
Industry, Trade and Investment, art patron, Prince Yemisis Shyllon as well as
activist, Oby Ezekwesili among others.
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Bolanle Austen-Peters
Founder Terra Kulture (right) With
Segun Aganga Minister Of Trade And Mutiu Sunmonu Managing Director Of Shell
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Conceived in 2002 but formally opened
for business in 2004, the Austen-Peters-led facility has grown to become
one-stop arts and culture outlet in the heart of Nigeria's leading business
district of Victoria Island. From art and craft gallery to indigenous foods,
languages and performing Arts via drama and musical contents as well as general
promotion of cultural values, Terra Kulture has blurred the line between the
corporate world of business and selling culture.
Shortly after singer, Olumide Dada 's
voice boomed over classical instrumentation version of Nigerian national
anthem, Lijadu’s opening remark set the direction in which the event followed
as he started by saying "we are here to celebrate the remarkable
achievement of Bolanle." But as the event peaked, the extacy generated
ended up celebrating both the facility and Bolanle. Lijadu noted that "culture is the climate of our
civilisation." The Terra Kulture model, he argued, has shown how to
celebrate culture.
After Lijadu's intro and background into
the making of the Terra Kulture phenomenon, another singers, Yinka Davies and
Ranti gave a R&B interlude before the backdrop screen opened foe a
documentary on Terra Kulture. The short documentary by Austen-Peters and Kunle
Afolayan-led Golden Effect, voiced
over by Bimbo Manuel, features Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka; poet and
former National Theatre boss, Ahmed Yerima; one time Chairman of Society of
Nigerian Artists (SNA), Lagos State Chapter Olu Ajayi; art collector and
founder of OYASAF, Prince Yemisi Shyllon; foremost fashion designer, Deola
Sagoe, Nollywood star, Joke Silva; master printmaker, Dr Bruce Onobrakpeya; and
metal artist, Fidelis Odogwu among others interviewed.
Soyinka whose several celebrated drama works
have been staged at the monthly Theatre
at Terra productions noted that "Terra Kulture is a symbol of
Nigeria's cultural evolution," in the post-independence era. For Silva,
the credit for the revival of theatre going culture in Lagos goes to Terra
Kulture with its support for artists, even "at token fees" for the
space. Also interviewed in the documentary, Austen-Peters recalled how Theatre @ Terra started started six
years ago with "just two directors, and now has 20 directors."
Onobrakpeya, Shyllon and Ajayi, stressed
the energy in art appreciation, which Terra Kulture art gallery space has
broungt into the business of managing art.
At 10, the Terra Kulture model was worth
celebrating and emulating for the basic reason of stressing that culture is as
good an enterprise as any other ventures, particularly in a country like
Nigeria that is gradually heading towards budgetry crisis as a result of gross
mismanagement of oil revenues by the Federal Government. Alternative sources of
revenue through tourism contents such as arts and culture cannot be more
appropriate at a time when Nigeria's largest importer of crude oil, the U.S has
warned that "America will stop importing energy from any where in the
world by 2025."
Being a culture facility in the heart
of Nigeria's business district, Victoria Island, Terra Kulture is, in the country's art,
culture and tourism environment, a phenomenon.
With
Terra Kulture art gallery, a new phase of art management and marketing surfaced
on Nigeria’s creative landscape. Recall that Terra Kulture, in partnership with
the then Tayo Aderinokun-led GTB, in 2007 created a forum known as Arts and
Business Foundation (ABF).
The council, an initiative, which had
the support of Ford Foundation, according to the promoters, was to create
ventilation for an increasingly populated house of Nigerian arts and culture.
At the launch, Austen-Peters had noted that talents were abound in the country,
but lack of enabling environment was a clog in the wheels of progress for the
creative sector.
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Mrs. Kavita Chellarams,
Erelu Dosunmu, Mrs Bose Clark And Mrs Doyin Akinyanju
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Seven years after the formation of ABF
and over three years after her parther Aderinokun died, the spirit of pushing
for the entreprenurship of arts and culture was echoed when she told the
audience at Terra Kulture's 10th anniversary her brief story along the cultural
path. Austen-Peters is a lawyer, and had her early career working at the United
Nations. "My last posting was to Ethiopia," she said after a deafenibg
applause that welcomed her onto the stage. "I saw the devastation of what
uneployment can do to a people." When she quit the UN job, it was still
disatisfaction all along taking up other jobs. "I kept changing jobs
because I hated sitting behind the desks always." And having developed a
passsion for history, arts and culture, she thought of "creating an
institution around them." That was the starting point. She disclosed how a
proposal "I wrote with the hekp of Deji Ali," set out the idea and
search for supports.
Ten years after, Austen-Peters did a
brief analysis and told the audience: "about 200 art exhibitions have been
held at the gallery, we create 60 jobs on a monthly basis, and we don't have to
boreow money to pay salaries." She reeled out her personal lessons gained
from heading a centre of arts and culture faxility. "Terra Kulture taught
me body politics and grew me as an individual, and that creative professionals
are no less impotant than others in science or medicine." In fact, she
argued that if a nation must move forward, the creative sector need to be
properly funded. She stressed, for example that "for each production of Theatre at Terra, we create so many
jobs." The celebrated work, Saro the
Musical production, Austen+Peters stated was being used as an experiment to
meet Broadway standard. The second edition of Saro the Musical is slated for next month at Muson Centre, Onikan,
Lagos.
As Access Bank, a partner in the 10th
Anniversary celebration of Terra Kulture shared the glory and success of one
decade in phenomenal promotion of the creativity sector, one individual in the
banking sector, Aderinokun (1955-12011) was not forgotten by the celebrant. At
the entrance of the hall, Aderinokun, the late Managing Director of GTBank, was
honoured with a tribute in poetry lines inscribed onto the side of his
photograph. The tribute says: Your life
was a blessing, Your memory, a
Treasure...you are loved beyond words and missed beyond measures...'
The honour did not stop there, Joseph
Umolbom, Manager at Terra Kulture, on behalf of the cultural centre gave
"Post-Humour Award to Aderinokun as a founding Chairman of Terra
Kulture." The late banker’s widow, Mrs Aderinokun received the award.
The event was also a moment of honour
for select dedicated workers at Terra Kulture who got Long Service Awards: Ibrahim Kuta, Hall Managers since 10
years; Mohanmed Goni, security
officer also in 10 years with Terra Kulture: and Rasheed Adelaye, Kitchen
Manager. Also, Accountant at Terra Kulture, Mrs Temitope Sanya was given award
"for keeping the books of the company."
Ahead of the 10th year celebration,
Austen-Peters has disclosed that Access Bank "is the new partner of Terra
Kulture." For those who have been tracking the reationship between Terra
Kulture and GTBank, in the past few months, the change of bank partner would
not come as a surprise.
In celebrating 10 years of
innovation and value add, Access Bank, according to Terra Kulture "is in
the partnership to promote its programs through sponsorship of the
anniversary celebrations. “This is consistent with Access Bank’s
commitment to the promotion of Arts and Culture and women-owned businesses,” the
bank was quoted.
Few days after, at the 10th anniversary event, the Managing
Director at Acces Bank, Mr Herbert Wigwe said "we knew her (Austen-Peters)
before she started Terra Kulture." Wigwe described Austen-Peters as
"modern day Amnbassador of Arts and Culture." The Access Bank boss
argued that the contribution of arts and culture to Nigeria's GDP was not a
fluke and assured that "we will continue to suppoert the creative
sector."
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Bolanle Austen-Peters And
Francois Sastourne The French Consul General
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Indeed, advanced economies of the world have shown that every aspect of
professions across the board contributes to the rise or fall of GDP. In fact, visual
arts, for example has contributed to the sudden rise of Chinese economy.
Potentially, Nigerian visual art has the biggest prospects as
vital contents in promoting tourism. But sadly, the Federal Government has
contributed almost nothing in promoting art, and by extension, reducing the
input of tourism value of Nigerian economy.
Several years before the rebase of
Nigeria’s GDP that eventually recognized arts and culture, Austen-Peters had
challenged government on the importance of building the creative sector into
the Nigerian economy. Then,
Government used to make a yearly claim about the country’s economy riseing by
certain percentage, leaving the arts and culture, and by extension, the tourism
industry appears left out of the so- called growth. Local and international
observers have noted improvement in the economy, recording to a GDP growth of
8.7 percent in 2010. Although dropped to 6.9 in the previous year, the growth
rate, according to economists, showed bigger prospects. If there was anywhere to feel the pulse
of the arts and culture sector within the context of a growing economy, Terra
Kulture came in as the window.
Shortly after a gathering in Lagos, organised to appraise the arts and culture
activities of Terra Kulture in the 2011 and prepare artists for the 2012
events, Mrs Bolanle Austen-Peters noted that culture and tourism were yet to be
built into the Nigerian economy.
Responding to a question on the impact of the country’s economic ‘growth’, on
the arts/culture and tourism sector, she stated that “tourism is not something
you stumble on. There must be concerted efforts from everybody; from government
to the common people on the streets who may have contact with visitors.”
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Mr And Mrs Tony Attah Md
Snepco, Mr. Osagie Okunbor Shell Group Relations Adviser, Mr. Mutiu Sunmonu Md
Shell
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Government, she stressed, should allow art to grow by “creating more art venues
and renovate the museums.”
Although, she admitted that Terra Kulture enjoys patronage of domestic and
foreign visitors, “but there should be more art and culture venues; we can’t do
it alone.”
Before the current merger of Terra
Kulture-Mydrim into what is now known as TKMG auction house, a remarkable sale
was recorded for one master, which would later resonate across subsequent
results of auctions, generally in Lagos.
It was at the second outing of Terra
Kulture in partnership with Nimbus 2000 and tagged Golden Jubilee Art Auction 2010, which had the 'Nigerian master
born in Ghana', El Anatsui's work sold for N4milliion naira. His wood panel, lot 72, Time Window (147 x 61 cm, 2006) sold at N3.8m while lot 61, from a
series, 1004 Flat (40 x 40 cm) went
for N3.6m.
Anatsui work sold for N4
million in 2010, shouldn't make any news, isn't it? Yes, but strangely, it did:
prior to the sale of Time Window, all
Anatsui's works sold at auctions in Lagos from April 2008 till then were,
strangely, under valued. Reason: the emerging art collectors in Nigeria,
exhumed by the secondary art market were unfamiliar with Anatsui's work.
Ironically, Anatsui was already selling in several hundred of thousands in
dollars overseas before the emergence of Nigerian secondary art market. It took
the Terra Kulture auction that sold his Time
Window for the subsequent sales of Anatsui's works at other auctions in
Lagos to place the University of Nigeria, Nsukka art teacher where he truly
belonged. In fact, Nigeria's premier auctioneer, Arthouse was the next
beneficiary of the Terra Kulture revelation when a panel by the artist Mirror Image sold for N5.5 million nairaat a November 2010
auction.
1994 . In 2008,
Terra Kulture made its debut art auction in partnership with Nimbus. The
auction had on sales some of the works that were used for the historic
Commonwealth Head of Government Meeting (CHOGOM) held at Abuja in 2003.
But for Austen-Peters, art auction goes beyond the mega buck. She has
repeatedly said the future of Nigerian art remains paramount. “Auction is not
always about money, but exposing good works, particularly from the young
artists.”
And part of developing a strong art auction with local content, perhaps
informed the choice of an anchor-person or auctioneer such as art patron,
Prince Yemisi Shyllon.
Still
expanding the secondary art market, an attempt was made by the joint venture of
Terra Kulture and Mydrim at Abuja in 2011.
Between art auction and the
primary market, the former appears to present a better challenge, isn't it?
Neither auction nor exhibition can replace one another, Austen-Peters stressed.
“Each complement the other,” she insisted while arguing that, “the easiest
option is to do a few art exhibitions and two auctions in a year."
Wonderful milestone.
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