ACETNEWS
Art, spirituality and the healing power of community will take centre stage in Lagos next month as Aniwura Collective presents Iyabeji, a multidisciplinary exhibition exploring Yoruba cosmology, ancestral knowledge and the bonds that sustain people through life’s most difficult moments.
The exhibition which will hold between November 14 and 21 at J. Randle Centre for Yoruba Culture and History, Onikan Lagos draws on artist Angie Aniwura’s personal journey through spiritual initiation, illness and recovery to examine how indigenous knowledge can inform contemporary artistic expression.
At the heart of the exhibition is Aniwura’s relationship with Ìyàbéjì, the Yoruba sacred twin Orisha, which became central to her spiritual and artistic exploration following a hysterectomy in 2013. She subsequently underwent initiations into Ifá in 2015, Osun and Odua in 2019, Egbe in 2021, and the Gelede society of Ilaro in 2023.
Her journey took another turn in 2023 following a breast cancer diagnosis. During her recovery, artistic collaboration and communal support became important sources of connection and reflection.
A photographic project she had earlier undertaken with artist and spiritual healer Lucy SM Johnston as a tribute to Ìyàbéjì evolved into collaborative painting sessions, creating a space for trust, spiritual reflection and shared care.
The contributions of storyteller and artist Peju Alatise, mentor Jelili Atiku, and members of Aniwura Collective, including Bénédicte Kurzen, Adegoke Adedotun and Anthony Adélẹ́yẹ Ọlájídé, also helped document and express her experiences.
Together, their works form what the organisers describe as a living shrine to endurance, memory and communal care.
Beyond this personal narrative, Iyabeji examines how Yoruba traditions and indigenous knowledge are preserved, transmitted and reinterpreted across generations. It also explores Ori, the spiritual dimension of individual destiny in Yoruba cosmology, and its relationship with ancestry, community and human existence.
Co-curated by Angie Aniwura and Lison Sabrina Musset, the exhibition will bring together painting, photography, film, installation, performance and spoken word, presenting tradition not as a relic of the past but as a living heritage capable of evolving through contemporary art.
The public programme includes an artist talk on November 15 featuring Angie Aniwura, Lucy SM Johnston, Anthony Adélẹ́yẹ Ọlájídé and Adegoke Adedotun, hosted by Musset.
A special lecture and film screening will conclude the programme on November 21, bringing together Yoruba cultural scholar and Ifá practitioner Araba Ifayemi Elebuibon and choreographer and J. Randle Centre director Qudus Onikeku to discuss indigenous knowledge and contemporary cultural expression.
The closing event will also feature A Separation from My Unborn Twins, a short film directed by Jelili Atiku, which traces Angie’s spiritual journey and relationship with the Gelede society of Ilaro against the background of her illness and recovery.
Through the exhibition, Aniwura Collective seeks to foster dialogue among artists, cultural practitioners, researchers and younger audiences about identity, belonging and the future of indigenous knowledge.
Ultimately, Iyabeji presents art as a bridge between ancestral wisdom and contemporary experience, inviting audiences to reflect on the connections between individuals, their communities and generations past and future.
