A clutch of artists, curators and enthusiasts is welcomed by drummers, dancers and an unforgiving bout of sunshine amid cranes and scaffolding. The burgeoning, clay-coloured edifice with its earthen finish designed by David Adjaye, a knighted Ghanaian-Brit, is to house the Museum of West African Art (MOWAA), a new hub for arts and culture in Nigeria’s historic Benin City. A jamboree of talks and workshops is more a proof-of-concept than a full-blown opening. Yet MOWAA already stands shoulders above most other Nigerian museums, where many valuable artefacts are shut away in old warehouses.
Nigeria seeks to restore pride in its artefacts, ancient and modern
By King Jaja
