Demas Nwoko

Demas Nwoko (born 1935) is a Nigerian artist, protean designer, architect and master builder. As an artist, he strives to incorporate modern techniques in architecture and stage design to enunciate African subject matter in most of his works. In the 1960s, he was a member of the Mbari Club of Ibadan, a committee of burgeoning Nigerian and foreign artists. He was also a lecturer at the University of Ibadan. In the 1970s, he was the publisher of the now-defunct New Culture magazine. Nwoko sees design as an ingenious activity that carries with it a focus on social responsibility for positive influences in the environment and culture of the society.

His inventiveness in using modern and new techniques for selected and protean African artworks led to his name being spread around town and in the country. Nwoko’s first major architectural design was for a Dominican mission in Ibadan. After the nation’s independence, some missions desired to decorate their churches with African motifs. He was originally approached to design a plaque for a new chapel but he later asked the Dominican fathers to help in designing a new chapel to be located in Ibadan.

Nwoko’s works fuse modern techniques in architecture and stage design with African tradition. With works such as The Dominican Institute, Ibadan and The Akenzua Cultural Center, Benin, to his credit, Nwoko is one “artist-architect” who believes in celebrating the African tradition in his works. In 2007, Farafina Books published The Architecture of Demas Nwoko, a study of Nwoko’s work and theories written by two British architects, John Godwin OBE, and Gillian Hopwood.

Directory Details:

Name: Demas Nwoko
Category: Multidisciplinary Designer
Country: Nigeria
Website: en.wikipedia.org