Why I’m Preserving Benin Folklore, Nigerian Heritage Via Arts, Technology – Odemwingie

In a Virtual Reality (VR) Lab in faraway China, artist and researcher Zainab Nneka Odemwingie has realised a project that encapsulates and drives her passion for the arts.

‘The Legend of Arua’ – immerses viewers into the ancient Kingdom of Benin City, giving them a chance to enter the palace of the Oba of Benin, to obtain a 360ᵒ view of one of his sons and giant, Asua.

Through a hand-drawn animation video, the viewer is first introduced to the subject, the circumstances surrounding his birth, and events that shaped who he was at the time. The project took four years to accomplish (2019 – 2022).

Speaking to the media, the Nigerian-born and UK resident artist said her passion for the preservation of Benin folklore and legendary figures was inspired at a young age by her observation of the absence of local folktale figures that looked like her and that she could relate to.

Although there was nothing wrong with the perfectly groomed Caucasian English-attired dolls she was gifted as a young girl, or the fairytales about Cinderella, Princess Elsa that were everywhere around her, she had wondered, “Where are our own fairytales? Where are the dolls and storybooks that celebrate African royalty, folklore and identity?”

Guided by her deep love for culture and storytelling, she sought to preserve near-extinct Benin folklore (oral literature) and its heroic figures through comics, paintings, drawings, technology, and Extended Reality (ER) art forms for the benefit of the future generation.
Contrary to fears that AI is a threat to artists, Odemwingie believes that art is all about the expression of the self and can never be a threat to artists who understand this.

“I was inspired by the likes of Bruce Onobrokpeya, and Vincent Van Gogh, whose artworks, like ‘The Starry Night’ enable you to see their feelings and thoughts. AI won’t give you that.”

She is rather deploying Generative AI to engender younger generations’ contact with local folklore heroes and heroines, thereby preserving Benin and African cultural heritage for posterity’s sake.

Beyond the preservation of African culture and heritage, Odemwingie is also focused on the promotion of local and diaspora talents through her upcoming competition projects.

A graduate of Fine and Applied Arts, University of Nigeria Nsukka, before acquiring a Master’s of Fine Arts, Digital Media at Jiangsu University, Zhejiang, China. She was a beneficiary of competitions locally and internationally, which provided opportunities that boosted her career. She aims to create similar opportunities for local and diasporan artists.

“I will be establishing art competitions that will convene young people, particularly in secondary school, to catch them young. This was how I got started in my journey as an artist.

A multi-media artist, Odemwingie’s work spans paintings, comics, and VR arts, including ‘The Legend of Arua’, ‘Sunflower Sonata’, ‘Fulani Elegance’, and ‘Hearth of Harmony’. She has had solo exhibitions, including Roots and Resonance (2022) in Abuja, in addition to group exhibitions Dream Alive 4 (2007) and Dream Alive 5 (2009) at UNN, and Goethe Institute Art Workshop Exhibition (2010).