Forthcoming Exhibitions
Tapestries Of Life : New Beginnings
Ndidi Dike’s return to painting, which formed the original context of her study at the University of Nigeria, testifies to her continued interrogation of African cultural registers, which she represents in previous and current work as a field of potent icons. It also testifies to her continued development as an artist. Her recent paintings are sparse and deploy uli symbols in a rather minimalist key. They capture the fluid grace of the indigenous Igbo model and document Dike’s long experience in the production of significant form.More importantly, these paintings reveal that after two decades devoted to social commentary and intense criticism of local governance, Dike is finally permitting herself room to use her art to express her own search for emotional sustenance for inners peace. Many of these new paintings evoke a joy of life that is quite startling and totally appropriate to an artist whose dedication to her art now allows a period of reminiscence and quietude. This new feeling is reflected in the title of many of her new paintings but most especially in those that evoke a dream state while asserting the artist’s right to chart her own course no matter how difficult or unpopular that course may be. FEB 2005
Dr. Sylvester Ogbechie. UCLA. Santa Barbara
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