NNACHORTAM
DEPARTMENT
PHOTOGRAPHY
Some people say Lagos is like the New York of Nigeria; that’s where I was born. My father and mother, indigenes of Mmiata and Umuem Anam, moved to the big city in the ’80s to do what Igbos do best. Trade. It’s not hard to imagine that coming from a country with over 500 languages and 250 ethnic groups, cultural memory becomes a regular matter of the heart.
My practice is a “dance” of mixed media, involving mainly photography and screen printing, anchored in gestures of performance and repetition. Drawing on masquerading from my Igbo roots, I explore transformation and the fluid boundaries of the seen and unseen in cultural heritage and representation. My canvas is colored with both stories and questions. I combine photographs, textiles, collages, and sound to reconstruct fragmented narratives of heritage shaped by generations of cross-cultural influence. Through these layered media, I express both the resilience and fragility of cultural memory.
I am committed to cultural preservation by way of making and I view my work as part of a movement to strengthen art conservation in communities impacted by neglect. Ultimately, I hope my work serves as an emblem of resilience, inviting audiences to engage with their heritage and offering future generations, including my son, a connection to their past and inspiration for their future.
I have used the word “cultural” five times in this statement.
2025, Cyanotype & screenprint of photographs, ink and acrylic on canvas, 52.5" x 70"
2024, Screenprint of photograph, cyanotype and ink on Canvas, 36" x 48"
(Left)
The Bluest Hands: “How do they deal with this ‘absent’ knowledge?”
2024, Screenprint of photograph, cyanotype and ink on Canvas, 36" x 48""
(Right)