Helene Love-Allotey
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Lot 143
Benedict Chukwukadibia Enwonwu M.B.E(Nigerian, 1917-1994)Ikorudu Road (framed)
12 October 2023, 14:00 BST
London, New Bond Street£30,000 - £50,000
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Benedict Chukwukadibia Enwonwu M.B.E (Nigerian, 1917-1994)
Ikorudu Road
signed and dated 'BEN ENWONWU/ 1953' (lower left)
oil on board
60 x 71cm (23 5/8 x 27 15/16in).
(framed)
signed and dated 'BEN ENWONWU/ 1953' (lower left)
oil on board
60 x 71cm (23 5/8 x 27 15/16in).
(framed)
Footnotes
Provenance
Purchased directly from the artist at an exhibition of his work in Lagos, circa 1957;
By direct descent;
Bonhams Sale, 'Africa Now- Modern & Contemporary African Art', London, 2017;
A private collection.
This landscape was bought by the previous owner's father when he was working as an education officer in the British colonial service in Nigeria c. 1956 - 1961. During this period, Enwonwu was employed by the colonial service to advise on art education. The two men shared an office and quickly became friends. Enwonwu invited his colleague to an exhibition of his work. The education officer particularly admired this depiction of Ikorodu Road. Enwonwu asked whether his wife liked it, and promised to sell him the painting if so.
As a captivating work in the artist's oeuvre, the present work employs bold blocks of colour, layered by meticulous detail to emphasise the fragility of the branches. The dynamic contrast of expressive brushstrokes and more carefully rendered brush strokes allows a sense of movement through the work. We get a sense of the weather conditions that Enwonwu may have completed this in a 'plein air' style.
Indeed, Enwonwu was accustomed to embarking on expeditions with his easel and driver to find areas of natural beauty that appealed to him. It becomes clear that Ikorudu was a favoured area of Enwonwu's if one examines his April 1973 USIS exhibition in Lagos. Two additional works also bear the title's Ikorodu old bridge over River Ogun (item 9) and Ikorodu Stream by Roadside (item 10). Exquisitely rendered , the present work acts as homage to the area that Enwonwu evidently felt a great affinity with.