Nigeria, the land of plenty

Dancing away at Iya Osun's birthday Green, yellow, beige were the official colours of Iya Osun’s birthday celebrations at the Oba’s palace. Green oval patterns, that reminded one of the skeleton of a sphere, were printed on the cloth that was used for dresses and the hair gear, the gele. As we entered the Oba’s compound, a hundred meters away from the junction of Osogbo’s central mosque, talking drums were happily providing a swinging call for dances and occasionally a welcome call to newcomers, that could involve the spelling out of the guests' names, in the hope that money would be sprayed on the drummers: blessings are always meant to be rewarded. The celebration took place in the lower courtyard of the palace, next to the red walls of a shrine decorated with white, black and orange designs. the colourful shrine at the palace of the Oba of Osogbo As usual, marquees had been erected, in a corner, for people to seat and have food and dri...

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...

Shango is stronger than fire The day we visited the sacred grove, a very menacing storm had just passed and the rain was still falling gently. As we approached the last group of sculptures we heard the sound of drum beating. It was a group of colorfully dressed dancers performing in the honor of Shango. The dance took place at the feet of the statue of security. Four drummers were creating the beat of the dance and one man a few group of girls were dancing and praising Shango, a caracter dressed in red. At some point Shango took some fire on a metal stick impregnated with fuel and swallowed it twice, showing his control of that element. He then went on bringing the flame close to his flesh: hands, arms and legs were purified by the fire one after the other. setting the rythm  Later on, as the rain was still falling a second set of dances took place next to another statue. This time, explained the university art professor who had interpreted Shango, it was an experimen...

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 ...