Title

Amuma 2

Identifier

Ihe-NKI1

Creator

Njoku Kenneth I.

Date

n.d.

Format

69 x 23 x 23 cm (18 kg)

Medium

Bronze

Abstract

Amuma reminisces an age long traditional Igbo festival that used to serve as checks on the populace. It is a prophetic practice of revealing individual ills that was thought to be hidden. Its sudden extinction called for this visual documentation. Amuma 2 expresses the above issues in a broader sense, with the contraption of 13 kindreds. The artist summarily reduced a community of 13 kindreds into a 4-in-one figure. Four is a significant number in Igbo culture, forming the izu nta (the Igbo small week), which "Chineke" used to create the earth and the days of the week (Eke, Orie, Afor, and Nkwo). The four heads are arranged in one lion-tail cap of the Igbo warriors (Okpu Nwagoro) and are suspended on otu olu, which translates to "one voice." The arrangement of these heads on a single neck symbolizes the unity of the people, who speak, sing, and purify one another with a unified voice, free of grudges and acrimony during the festive period. The tactile quality of the piece is enhanced by the Igbo uli body designs, which are etched as incisions running across the sculpture. The rattles, prominently displayed on the four figures, are evenly raised to chest level in unison. The faces exude a serious and determined expression, emphasizing the gravity and importance of the issues being addressed. The sudden extinction of this festival inspired the artist to create this piece in a durable material, bronze, ensuring its preservation for posterity.