{"id":2205,"date":"2025-11-04T12:21:00","date_gmt":"2025-11-04T12:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/?p=2205"},"modified":"2026-01-22T12:31:41","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T12:31:41","slug":"tate-modern-nigerian-modernism-giacometti","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/tate-modern-nigerian-modernism-giacometti\/","title":{"rendered":"TATE MODERN: NIGERIAN MODERNISM &#038; GIACOMETTI"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>TATE MODERN: NIGERIAN MODERNISM<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ben Enwonwu<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201eNigerian Modernism: maternal figures as symbols of strength, continuity and transcendence\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201eArt invokes the spirit world by giving it form\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201eOverlapping figures in identical poses to create rhythmic patterns\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201eCompositions marked by flowing, rhythmic lines and simplified human forms\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shocking:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Adanma masquerade is performed exclusively by <strong>men as part of Igbo cultural tradition<\/strong>, which generally limits all masquerade activities to male participants.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Key reasons for this tradition include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Masquerade as a Male Domain:<\/strong> In Igbo culture, masquerades (Mmanwu) are fundamentally a male practice, and their creation, care, and performance are typically restricted to men who are initiated into exclusive secret societies.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Representation of Spirits:<\/strong> Masquerades are traditionally believed to represent ancestral spirits or deities, and only men are permitted to embody or interact with these spirits directly within the ceremonial context.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Performance of Femininity:<\/strong> The Adanma, meaning &#8220;beautiful woman&#8221; or &#8220;first beautiful daughter,&#8221; is a maiden spirit mask designed to idealize and display female beauty, grace, and elegance. Men wear the mask and costume to imitate these feminine attributes through dance, a performance of gender identity within a traditional framework.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2022 \u2022 <strong>Cultural Rules:<\/strong> Specific, strict rules govern gender interaction with masquerades in Igbo society. <strong>Women are traditionally prohibited from touching the masks or understanding the full spiritual meaning behind them, though they can observe the performance from a distance and participate in the cheering.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"1178\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_2904-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1178\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_2904-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_2904-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_2904-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_2904-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_2904-9x12.jpg 9w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_2904-600x800.jpg 600w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_2904-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"1176\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2A691BD4-D94C-49D1-8E34-7DE14F3C5EC5-576x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1176\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2A691BD4-D94C-49D1-8E34-7DE14F3C5EC5-576x1024.jpg 576w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2A691BD4-D94C-49D1-8E34-7DE14F3C5EC5-169x300.jpg 169w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2A691BD4-D94C-49D1-8E34-7DE14F3C5EC5-768x1365.jpg 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2A691BD4-D94C-49D1-8E34-7DE14F3C5EC5-864x1536.jpg 864w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2A691BD4-D94C-49D1-8E34-7DE14F3C5EC5-1152x2048.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2A691BD4-D94C-49D1-8E34-7DE14F3C5EC5-7x12.jpg 7w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2A691BD4-D94C-49D1-8E34-7DE14F3C5EC5.jpg 1206w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"2210\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2903-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2210\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2903-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2903-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2903-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2903-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2903-9x12.jpg 9w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2903-600x800.jpg 600w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2903-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"2206\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9A6026E4-AAA7-4EC7-9359-9DC3F6F66A3E-576x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2206\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9A6026E4-AAA7-4EC7-9359-9DC3F6F66A3E-576x1024.jpg 576w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9A6026E4-AAA7-4EC7-9359-9DC3F6F66A3E-169x300.jpg 169w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9A6026E4-AAA7-4EC7-9359-9DC3F6F66A3E-768x1365.jpg 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9A6026E4-AAA7-4EC7-9359-9DC3F6F66A3E-864x1536.jpg 864w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9A6026E4-AAA7-4EC7-9359-9DC3F6F66A3E-1152x2048.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9A6026E4-AAA7-4EC7-9359-9DC3F6F66A3E-7x12.jpg 7w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/9A6026E4-AAA7-4EC7-9359-9DC3F6F66A3E.jpg 1206w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"2207\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/6C3B832F-CD4B-4B03-8B6F-AB6CCC07B463-576x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2207\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/6C3B832F-CD4B-4B03-8B6F-AB6CCC07B463-576x1024.jpg 576w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/6C3B832F-CD4B-4B03-8B6F-AB6CCC07B463-169x300.jpg 169w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/6C3B832F-CD4B-4B03-8B6F-AB6CCC07B463-768x1365.jpg 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/6C3B832F-CD4B-4B03-8B6F-AB6CCC07B463-864x1536.jpg 864w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/6C3B832F-CD4B-4B03-8B6F-AB6CCC07B463-1152x2048.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/6C3B832F-CD4B-4B03-8B6F-AB6CCC07B463-7x12.jpg 7w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/6C3B832F-CD4B-4B03-8B6F-AB6CCC07B463.jpg 1206w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"2208\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2909-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2208\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2909-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2909-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2909-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2909-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2909-9x12.jpg 9w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2909-600x800.jpg 600w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2909-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"2209\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2910-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2209\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2910-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2910-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2910-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2910-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2910-9x12.jpg 9w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2910-600x800.jpg 600w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/IMG_2910-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>TATE MODERN GIACOMETTI SCULPTURES EXHIBITION:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Alberto Giacometti 1901-1966<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Born Switzerland, worked France and Switzerland<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Femme debout c. 1958-9, cast 1964<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Standing Woman<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Femme debout c. 1958-9, cast 1964<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Standing Woman<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Femme, \u00e9paule cass\u00e9e c.1958-9, cast 1964<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Woman with a Broken Shoulder<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bronze<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Purchased with assistance from the Friends of the Tate Gallery 1965<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>T00775-7<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During the late 1950s, Giacometti made a number of fragmentary figures with their arms partly or entirely missing. Their slender forms appear vivid yet fragile. The writer Jean Genet (1910-1986) commented:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The resemblance of his figures to each other seems to me to represent that precious point at which human beings are confronted with the most irreducible fact: the loneliness of being exactly equivalent to all others.&#8217;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"769\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"2213\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.57-769x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2213\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.57-769x1024.png 769w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.57-225x300.png 225w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.57-768x1022.png 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.57-1154x1536.png 1154w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.57-9x12.png 9w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.57-600x800.png 600w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.57.png 1390w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 769px) 100vw, 769px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"697\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"2211\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.41-697x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2211\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.41-697x1024.png 697w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.41-204x300.png 204w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.41-768x1128.png 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.41-8x12.png 8w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.27.41.png 1046w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 697px) 100vw, 697px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"724\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"2212\" src=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.28.08-724x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2212\" srcset=\"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.28.08-724x1024.png 724w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.28.08-212x300.png 212w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.28.08-768x1087.png 768w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.28.08-8x12.png 8w, https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Screenshot-2026-01-22-at-12.28.08.png 1046w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 724px) 100vw, 724px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>TATE MODERN: NIGERIAN MODERNISM Ben Enwonwu \u201eNigerian Modernism: maternal figures as symbols of strength, continuity [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46,143,164,210,8,133,113,98,132,236,284],"tags":[288,290,293,291,292,287,289,286,242,285],"class_list":["post-2205","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bodies","category-caring","category-dancers","category-duality","category-exhibitions-art-shows","category-feminism","category-identity","category-inspiration","category-motherhood","category-music","category-racism","tag-african-art","tag-black-mother","tag-confrontation","tag-exclusion","tag-loneliness","tag-paintings","tag-patriarchy","tag-sculptures","tag-spirituality","tag-tate-modern"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2205"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2205\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2214,"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2205\/revisions\/2214"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2205"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2205"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olgaszynkarczuk.com\/pl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}