Wole Soyinka Exhibition: Scooping gems from the Lion’s den

Weeks before the D-day, the firecrackers had been exploding, brightening and colouring the international skyline in celebration of the 90th birthday of Wole Soyinka, a professor and Africa’s first Nobel laureate in literature and one of the greatest global literary icons of the century!

From Nigeria to Rabat in Morocco, Europe to America the airwaves were filled with jubilation, profound intellectual discourses, musical, dramatic and cinematic performances in tribute to the great man for imprinting his force of energy and artistic genius to ennobling the world.

The climax of the anniversary celebration was on Saturday, July 13 when various organizations held special sessions and performances in honour of the literary giant. In Ibadan, for example, the Nigerian Copyright Commission in Oyo State hosted a gathering that featured talks, special performances at the Wole Soyinka Theatre, University of Ibadan. It was a follow-up to an international symposium held at the University of Lagos the previous day in which renowned literary icons and scholars including former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Prof Niyi Osundare, Prof Olu Obafemi, Prof Rezinat Mohammed and Prof Ahmed Yerima were speakers.

But the ‘artquacking’ celebration is far from being over. It continues till the end of July and judging by plans other individuals and bodies still nursed, will probably last throughout entire the year.

For instance, in Ibadan, a city pivotal to his unfolding, a month-long exhibition is ongoing at the Initiative for Information, Arts and Culture Development in Nigeria (IACD) library and resource centre, Jericho area of the metropolis.

The show, which opened two weeks ago, offers anyone who has probably missed out on the past events ‘ or seeks original and authentic information about the man with the white mane recognizable everywhere in the world, more than sufficient tons of raw knowledge about him to gorge on.

In its conceptualization and execution it holistically and imaginatively captures and presents the essence of the persona, life history and many sides of Soyinka, the iconoclast, artist, civic activist and so on.
Indeed, surveying the shelves and stands was like reading from the pages of Soyinka’s autobiographical series – ‘Ake’, ‘Isara’, Ibadan: The Years of Penkelemesi’, and his memoirs – ‘The Man Died’ and ‘You Must Set Forth At Dawn’.

The works elegantly and thematically laid out in the foyer of the IACD through the different sections of the facility, had unique story to tell, sometimes unfurling more beyond what’s only hinted at in the public domain.

Remarkably, however, they all together built a wholesome, uniform narrative that developed through progressive exploration of the diverse perspectives and insights they offered.

With the exhaustive vault of clues and revelations about him from cradle to now, the exhibition collapses bridges the gulf between the great writer and the average person to whom Soyinka is simply an enigma and who might know him merely by reputation.

From his own books to books written about him, his personal effects – mugs, clothing, smoking pipe, guitar, gramophone, mementos, artefacts, posters, prizes and awards; video clips, testimonials from friends such as the late Attorney General of the Federation, Chief Bola Ige; and former Vice Chancellor of the then University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Prof Ojetunji Aboyade; and photographs depicting his metamorphosis from childhood into adulthood, his native Isara and Abeokuta settings as well as Ibadan, where he went to school (Government College, Ibadan and University of Ibadan), worked and shot into national and global limelight, his role in the Nigerian conflicts in the 60s and post Nigerian civil war politics, as well as of him and world leaders and his equally illustrious contemporaries, the spectator gets to encounter WS, also called Kongi by fans much more intimately – almost able to sniff him!

There were also other pictures of him with world leaders and his equally illustrious contemporaries. Among these were: the late Nelson Mandela, former American President Bill Clinton, Chinua Achebe and John Pepper Bekederemo- Clarke.

I was privileged to have a guided tour of the marvelous display along with Emeritus Prof Femi Osofisan who I ran into at the nearby The Booksellers while both on different missions there on Friday, July 12.
The eminent literary scholar and Soyinka’s acolyte had come to discuss the production of ‘Isara’ he was rehearsing to stage later in the month in honor of Soyinka with Dr. Kolade Mosuro, the CEO of the reputed bookshop and chief organizer of the exhibition. He had kindly invited me along to see the exhibition.

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We were conducted round by the young, personable Director of the IACD, Karamat Ajala, who provided some background gists about some of the materials on display and their sourcing.

By the time we came to the end of the excursion, the symbolism of the life-size Egungun masquerade costume which stood at the entrance of the library as the first exhibition item in the library hall that housed the largest portion of the collage, had become clear to me.

It could only have been an abstraction, a teaser of a challenge or promise to the viewer to deconstruct or unravel the man many see as an enigma, highly complex, highly inscrutable, if not unfathomably deep!

May I daresay the promise was fulfilled.
In the about one hour the tour lasted, I
felt like Daniel, leisurely strolling and stroking the Lion’s mane in his den.