Rowland Ola Abíọ́dún

Rowland Ola Abíọ́dún (born 25 July 1941) is a Nigerian-American author and professor best known for his contributions to the field of African Art and History, specifically Yoruba Art. He is currently the John C. Newton Professor of Art, the History of Art, and Black Studies at Amherst College.

Life and career

Background

In his hometown Yorubaland, there were many traditional storytellers, and Abíọ́dún was immersed in the Yoruba myths of creation and transformation. Legends of Ife accompanied by religious tradition made up Abíọ́dún's early cultural education. His early exposure to traditional education in Yoruba art and culture fostered the direction of his lifelong research. Immersion in Yoruba language, artistic concepts, and belief systems enabled Abíọ́dún to engage the philosophical notions at the heart of the Yoruba worldview. His thorough dedication to the study of African art is encapsulated in his written works, which convey his research in a format accessible to both insiders and outsiders to the field. Abíọ́dún aims through all of these works to directly engage his art subjects without inadvertently silencing or leaving out altogether, the voices of their creators and users.

As a Yoruba culture bearer and an art historian, Abíọ́dún centralizes the Yoruba language and culture as critical components of his research methods for the study and deeper understanding of Yoruba art. Starting with his earliest publications such as "Naturalism in 'Primitive' Art: A Survey of Attitudes” (1975), and "Ifa Art Objects: An Interpretation Based on Oral Traditions" (1975), his search for the interrelationship of verbal and visual arts has progressed with his most recent publication, Yoruba Art and Language: Seeking the African in African Art,(2014). The book encompasses decades of research and its reception reflects the its contribution to the field of African Art Studies both as an informative work and as a challenge to current research methodologies. From College Art Association Reviewer Lynne Ellsworth: "For scholars of African art, Abiodun brings new levels of understanding, nuance, and insights for consideration to already familiar works and forms. Applicable to all art historians, Yoruba Art and Language emphasizes the need to beware of the cultural, and specifically the linguistic, contexts in which art is made."

Education

Abíọ́dún attended High School at Government College Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria in 1960, and received his B.A. in Fine Arts with First Class Honors at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria, in 1965. Abíọ́dún went on to complete his M.A. in Art History from the University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1969. While at University of Toronto he completed a thesis: “The Origin of Ife Naturalism”. As a professor at Amherst College Abíọ́dún received an A.M., an honorary Masters degreee, in 1992.

Employment

History

Abíọ́dún has a long career as a Professor and Research fellow in the fields of Black Studies, African Studies, African Arts, and Art and Art History with many Colleges and Universities. The dispersion of these institutions across multiple nations reflects the breadth of Abíọ́dún's work as a scholar.

Amherst College

Abíọ́dún began his career at Amherst college as a visiting professor in 1989, focusing on the "efficient function" of artwork in the context of African art. Currently Abíọ́dún is employed as a John C. Newton Professor of Art and the History of Art, and of Black Studies at Amherst College. His courses span both departments and are in many cases interdisciplinary in and of themselves. Abíọ́dún incorporates video, museum visits, and artists' workshops into his classes to emphasize the importance of art in context. A full list of the courses offered by Abíọ́dún during his tenure at Amherst College as of 2017:

• Verbal and Visual Metaphors in Africa
• Myth, Ritual and Iconography in West Africa
• African Art and the Diaspora
• Survey of African Art
• Seminar on Art and Artists in Africa
• Contemporary African Art
• Methodology of Art Historical Research
• African Art and the West
• Studies in Art Criticism and Aesthetics
• Seminar in Painting
• Painting and Drawing
• Form and Meaning in African Art
• Art History and Appreciation

Television Appearances

Given his prominence in the field of African Art Abíọ́dún has been interviewed for various documentaries and television programs. Prominently, he worked as a Smithsonian World Film Consultant and Participant in relation to Kindred Spirits: Contemporary Nigerian Art. He was also interviewed by the BBC for the World Service program, first for the “Art of Africa” series on the theme, “For Our Mothers and Gods across the World”, in 1998 and later for “The History of Africa” series focusing on the arts, in 2000. PBS interviewed Abíọ́dún for the “Religion and Ethics” with particular reference to the “Art and Oracle” exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, in 2000.

Publications

Yoruba Art and Language: Seeking the African in African Art

Yoruba Art and Language is simultaneously a work of art history, archaeology, and anthropology. Abíọ́dún presents insights into Yorùbá art and material culture by examining them through the context of Yorùbá language and praise poetry. Given the importance of the spoken word to the understanding of the book's materials, the book includes a companion website with audio clips of the Yoruba language, which assists the reader in making the integral connection between art and language in Yoruba culture.

Reviews for Yoruba Art and Language

• Olufemi Taiwo, NKA: Journal of Contemporary African Art, 2017.
• Albert Mosely, Journal On African Philosophy, 2016
• Ndubuisi C. Ezeluomba, African Studies Quarterly, 2016.
• Ropo Sekoni, Ooduapathfinder.com 2016
• Sylvester O. Ogbechie, African Arts, 2016.
• Joseph M.Murphy, Material Religion, 2016.
• W. Rea, Africa: The Journal of International African Institute, 2015
• Akinwumi Ogundiran, African Studies Review, 2015
• Tunde Babawale, Africa Today, 2015
• Grey Gundaker, African Studies Review, 2015

All Publications

• Ifá Divination: Knowledge, Power and Performance. Co-edited with Jacob Olupona, Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press, 2016
• Yoruba Art and Language: Seeking the African in African Art. Cambridge University Press, 2014.
• “Yoruba in Nigeria and Diaspora,” in Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion, eds. Joanne B. Eicher and Doran H. Ross, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.
• Cloth Only Wears to Shreds: Yoruba Textiles and Photographs from the  Beier Collection, Co-authored with Ulli Beier and John Pemberton III, Amherst College, Amherst, MA, 2004.
• “African Aesthetics” The Journal of Aesthetic Education, 35, 4, winter 2002,  pp. 15–24.
•  Fifteen Years of Iwalewa Haus:  Its Philosophy, Directions and Accomplishments, Bayreuth: Iwalewa Haus, University of Bayreuth, Germany, 1996.
• 'What Follows Six is More Than Seven': Understanding African Art, London: British Museum Press, 1995.
• The Yoruba Artist:  New Theoretical Perspectives on African Arts, Co-edited with H.J. Drewal   and J. Pemberton 3rd, Smithsonian Institution Press, 1994.
• "Let Us Admit That We Have Seen An Elephant": Asiru Olatunde: Retrospective 1961 - 1992.  Bayreuth:  Iwalewa-Haus, University of Bayreuth, Germany, 1992
• Yoruba Art and Aesthetics, Co-authored with H.J. Drewal, and J. Pemberton III, Zurich:  Rietberg Museum, 1991.
• Conversations on Yoruba Culture, "A Young Man Can Have the Embroidered Gown of an Elder, but He Can't Have the Rags of an Elder," With Ulli Beier, Bayreuth:  Iwalewa Haus, University of  Bayreuth, Germany, 1991.
•  Creating Her Own Universe:  Georgina Beier's Drawings, Altes Schloss, Bayreuth:  Iwalewa Haus, University of Bayreuth, Germany, 1991.
• Yoruba:  Nine Centuries of Art and Thought, Co-authored with H.J. Drewal and J. Pemberton III, New York:  Center for African Art and Harry N. Abrams Inc. 1989.
• “Who Was the First to Speak?:  Insights from Ifa Orature and Sculptural Repertoire,” in Orisa Devotion as World Religion, eds. Jacob K. Olupona  and Terry Rey, Wisconsin: The University of Wisconsin Press, pp. 51–69, 2008.
• “Muraina Oyelami: Simplicity and Sophistication” pp. 124–135; “Rufus Ogundele: A Painter with the strength of  a blacksmith” pp. 136–141; “Bisi Fabunmi’s Graphic Work” pp. 142–151; and “Georgina Beier: Black and White Threads Never Quarrel” pp. 106–111, in New Art from Africa in the collection of Heinz and Gerlinde Greiffenberger, ed. Ulli Beier, Druck: Druckerei zu Allenburg, 2005.
• Foreword, in Yoruba Religious Textiles, eds. Elisha P. Renne and Babatunde Agbaje-Williams, eds. Ibadan: BookBuilders, 2005.      
• “Hidden Power: Osun, the Seventeenth Odu," in Osun across the Waters, eds. J. M. Murphy and M. Sanford, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, pp. 10–33, 2001.
• “African Aesthetics,” in The Journal of Aesthetic Education, 35, 4, pp. 5–23, 2001.
• "Riding the Horse of Praise:  The Mounted Motif Figure in Ifa Divination Sculpture," in Insight and Artistry in African Divination, Washington, DC & London, John Pemberton III, editor, pp. 182–92, 2000.           
• Preface, A History of Art in Africa, New York: Prentice Hall, Inc. and Harry N. Abrams, Inc. 2000         
• "The Dichotomy of Theory and Practice in Blocker's The Aesthetics of Primitive Art," in The Journal of Aesthetic Education, 29, 3 Fall 1995, pp. 38–44,1995.
• "Understanding Yoruba Art and Aesthetics:  The Concept of Ase," African Arts, 3, XXVII, 1994; pp. 68–78, 102-03, 1994             
• Creating Her Own Universe:  Georgina Beier's Drawings, Altes Schloss, Bayreuth:  Iwalewa Haus, University of Bayreuth, Germany, 1991    
• "Owo et le mythe de la <Benin-isation'" in Les Arts du Nigeria.  Paris: Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1991.
• "La signification et les artefacts d'Ifa dans la culture Yoruba" in Les Arts du Nigeria.  Paris: Réunion des Musées Nationaux, 1991.
• "The Future of African Art Studies:  An African Perspective," African Art Studies, The State of the Discipline.  Paper presented at a Symposium organized by the National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, September 16, 1987, pp. 63-89, 1990
• (With H.J. Drewal and J. Pemberton) "Yoruba:  Nine Centuries of African Art and Thought,"   (Exhibition Preview), African Arts, XXIII, 1, pp. 68-77, 1989.       
• "Woman in Yoruba Religious Images," African Languages and Cultures, 2, 1, pp. 1-18, 1989.
• "Verbal and Visual Metaphors:  Mythical Allusions in Yoruba Ritualistic Art of Ori," Word &Image:  A Journal of Verbal/Visual Enquiry, Vol. 3, No. 3, July-Sept., pp. 252-70, 1987.
• "Der Begriff des Iwa in der Yoruba-Aesthetik," Tendenzen, 1984, NR 146, pp. 62-68, 1984.
• "Identity and the Artistic Process in Yoruba Aesthetic Concept of Iwa", Journal of Cultures andIdeas, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 13-30, 1983.
• "Concept of Woman in Traditional Yoruba Art and Religion," Nigerian Women and Development, University of Ibadan Press, A. Ogunseye, et al., eds., pp. 950-68, 1982.
• "Ori Divinity:  Its Worship, Symbolism and Artistic Manifestation," in Proceedings of the World  Conference on Orisa Tradition,  Ife:  Department of African Languages and Literatures, University of Ife, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, pp. 484-515, 1981.
• "A Reconsideration of the Function of Ako, Second Burial Effigy in Owo," Africa, Journal of theInternational African Institute, Vol. 46, No. 1, pp. 4-20, 1976.
• "Ifa Art Objects:  An Interpretation Based on Oral Traditions," Yoruba Oral Tradition, ed. Wande Abimbola.  Ife:  Department of African Languages and Literatures, University of Ife, Ile-Ife,        Nigeria, pp. 421-69, 1975.
• "Naturalism in Primitive Art:  A Survey of Attitudes," Odu, Journal of West African Studies, No. 10, pp. 129–36, 1975.