Fuel for Thought: Perspectives from the Niger Delta

MA Curating 2019, University of Essex. Fuel for Thought: Perspectives from the Niger Delta draws on the complexities of the relationship between people and the environment in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Oil companies have operated for more than eighty years in this area; despite contributing to the economy of the country, they also exploit the Niger Delta’s natural resources with vast consequences for people’s lives and ecosystem. The exhibition explores how artists are responding to the changing social and physical landscape of the Niger Delta through impactful artistic practices that are inspired by the local context and expand it to global issues. Climate change has no borders and stands as a universal concern, but there is a need to recognize environmental injustices to consider the matter effectively and think a possible future together. Fuel for Thought: Perspectives from the Niger Delta presents contemporary artistic practices inspired by the ways a river such as the Niger, giving life to a natural environment, becomes a site of pollution, but overall stands as a cultural symbol, connecting the past with the present and the Niger Delta with the rest of the world. Curated by: Tori Agastina, Sahel D’halluin, Justine Jean, Na Na, Emily Osborne, Shanpu Qu, Effrosyni Souvermezoglu, Alexandra Torres, Cameron Williamson and Polly Rayner-Woodrow.