Nigeria’s art colossus and father of art in the country Prof. Bruce Onobrakpeya will be participating in the maiden exhibition to raise awareness for children living with autism. This statement was made known to the public by Mr Femi Coker, The manager of Orisun Art Gallery Abuja. In his statement, he opined that the therapeutic potential of art will be used in encouraging and galvanizing support for these children who need special care. The exhibition is tagged “The Master and The Prodigy.
This position is aligned with the United Nations’ which set aside the month of April as a month to bring to the public knowledge the challenges and plight of those that have autism and how intervention can be made
The exhibition will be in collaboration with Tagbo-Okeke, who will organize a first-of-its-kind art exhibition, to commemorate the event, bringing together in an art exhibition Prof. Bruce Onobrakpeya, a quintessential master artist and educator and the prodigious autistic teenage artist, Kanye Tagbo-Okeke, from the 29th of April at the gallery.
Art universally is known to be therapeutic, the possession of this special gift, its development and utilization, has been used over the ages, to inspire, challenge, galvanize people to action, draw attention to global causes, and address social ills and document the evolution of time.
The cultural advocate said one of the core objectives of Orisun Art Gallery, is to use art and the gallery as a platform to stimulate the consciousness of communities and engage their attention on the very important role of art, in addressing some fundamental issues bordering on health and well-being, that should be dear to our heart.
Autism spectrum disorder is one such. And it is a serious developmental disorder, that impairs the ability to communicate and interact. It impacts the nervous system, leading to obsessive interests and compulsive behaviours. Treatment for this disorder can help, but unfortunately, this condition cannot be cured.
Therefore, children with autism have a special need for care and attention. Some of them face discrimination and abuse because their conditions are not properly diagnosed and also because the awareness out in the public is not adequate enough.
As art is very instructive for teaching and learning, visual art particularly has a resonance that captures the attention of all the categories of people.
Coker also added that the event will honour the immense contribution of Prof. Onobrakpeya to the art industry, spanning over six decades, as a special guest and to spotlight the incredible talent of Kanye Tagbo-Okeke and more importantly create more awareness for autism.
“We are very grateful for this collaboration with the art giant. We are desirous of bringing awareness to the plight of those suffering from autism and this partnership with Bruce is soul lifting and encouraging “Tagbo Okeke, the father of Kanye concluded
