Nigeria, the land of plenty

a divine creature from Suzanne Wenger's last work (detail from Odi) Nature is green, leaves are happily growing on trees and in the bush following the recent rains. The sacred grove in Osogbo feels like an impenetrable forest after the dry season which had cleared a lot of foliage to form a soft blanket under one's feet and fertilise the soil. The river Osun snakes its way through the grove, silently and somewhat lazily, conveying a deep sense of peace spiced-up by the appearance of the artworks hidden throughout the grove. The reinforced concrete sculptures erected through the grove by Suzanne Wenger and her team now appear like fantastic creatures in the forest. A few works are visible from the road that traverses the grove, but secrecy and mystery is essential to traditional spirituality, so many of them are located in remote corners of the grove because these representations of Yoruba divinities require their own privacy, their own corner to be properly  interacted w...

a portrait of Suzanne Wenger in her last years Suzanne Wenger, an austrian artist, came to Nigeria in 1950 and decided to stay in Osogbo for the rest of her life as she became a yoruba high priest under the name of Adunni. She worked with her then boyfriend Ulli Beier to create concrete sculptures in the sacred grove of Osogbo , a wood on a hill traversed by a river. She contributed along the years to reinvigorate the local yoruba art scene in Osogbo. She adopted many children, some of which became famous like Nike . After a few years in Osogbo she contracted tuberculosis and was cured with the help of local medicine thanks to contacts with Yoruba priests. She was then initiated to Yoruba beliefs and became a \yoruba priestess. welcome to Suzanne and Ulli's world Her house in Osogbo has three levels. It is built of stone and concrete. Her bedroom was on the second floor, a simple room with a bed, a collection of fine artifacts and some now dusty books.  The hous...

market experience starts early The Yoruba city that became the city of Suzanne Wenger: Osogbo is about 200/250km north east from Lagos. It features an interesting mix of churches and mosques. The railway crosses the town. Osogbo central mosque The oldest part is hosting a market along several narrow streets, the remains of a palace, the grand mosque with a dome partly damaged as if a bomb had landed there. Grass grows on the edge of its roofs. It is built of stone the same way as the cathedral which looks much less impressive and all towards the sky.  the cathedral of all Saints A part of the market is dedicated to witchcraft. A lot of the houses could actually be very beautiful colonial buildings were they not in an advance stage of dilapidation. Their façade are reddish yellow as if the ground had slowly varnished them.  faded beauty

Alajogun-Alajere-Obluaye Osogbo is one of the few touristic destinations in Nigeria to be highlighted in western travel guides. This is because an austrian artist, Suzanne Wenger, came to Nigeria in the sixties and decided to stay in Osogbo for the rest of her life as she became a yoruba high priest under the name of Adunni. She worked with her then boyfriend Ulli Beier to create concrete and iron sculptures in the sacred grove of Osogbo, a wood on a hill traversed by a river. The place is a sacred place of worship to Yoruba gods. Oshun along the river Suzanne Wenger passed away in 2009 but the grove is still standing. Her work has been restored recently and is attracting visitors from around the globe. There is a festival in the last week of August with traditional celebrations that gathers most of the tourist in the year. the palace The grove hosts a palace with a thatched roof and walls of mud painted with basic shapes in white, yellow and dark red. A mix ...