![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/www.theprogressoflove.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Emeka_Ogboh_CourtesyArtist.jpg\" "\\"Emeka_Ogboh\\"")
\u00a0Photo courtesy of the artist<\/strong><\/em><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>\nb. 1977, Lagos<\/span>Born and raised in Lagos, where he continues to live and work, Emeka Ogboh received a BA in fine and applied arts from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 2001. Predominately working with sound, video, and photography, Ogboh explores the multidimensional character of cities, in particular his hometown and other \u201cthird world\u201d locations. In acoustic projects that take Lagos\u2014the economic and cultural capital of Nigeria and a metropolis acutely affected by globalization\u2014as their subject, the artist records the chaotic mix of old and new sounds that defines its character. The resulting soundscapes create a dialogue between the physicality and imagining of Lagos, and by installing them in international public spaces Ogboh raises questions about place\/displacement, cultural narcissism, and globalization.<\/span>Ogboh is co-founder of the Video Art Network Lagos and participated in the 16th International Symposium on Electronic Art, Dortmund, Germany (2010), as part of the Media Lab in Africa delegation. He is a member of the African Centre for Cities\u2019 African Urbanism Initiative at the University of Cape Town and the international art collective Urban Dialogues. His group exhibitions include Afropolis, Rautenstrauch-Joest-Museum, Cologne (2011); ARS 11, Nykytaiteen museo Kiasma, Helsinki (2011); and Localities, Museet for Samtidskunst, Roskilde, Denmark (2010); and his video work has been included in several international festivals. He also participated in the year-long project On Independence and the Ambivalence of Promise organized by the Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos (2010).<\/span><\/p>\n
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>via:\u00a0http:\/\/www.theprogressoflove.com\/?p=194<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n __________________________<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n BY\u00a0UGOCHUKWU-SMOOTH C. NZEWI<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Armed with microphones, a digital recording device, and a video camera, Emeka Ogboh captures the maddening hyper-visuality of Lagos: vivid colours, the syncopated cries of street and highway hawkers, yelling bus conductors, the impatient bleats of car and bus horns, and hoards of people in constant motion. In collaboration with the\u00a0Goethe Institut Lagos<\/span><\/a>, Ogboh recently launched an online live sound streaming of\u00a0Lagos Soundscapes<\/span><\/a>, coinciding with World Listening Day on July 18, 2013.<\/span><\/p>\n Lagos is the subject and object of your visual interest. What makes the city so attractive?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Emeka Ogboh:<\/b>\u00a0I live and work in Lagos. I am deeply embedded in the city, just like everyone else living there. There is no way you can ignore the pervasive influence of Lagos. From the moment you wake up until you go to bed, you are affected by the city. As an artist, it\u2019s normal that one\u2019s place of domicile becomes the starting point of one\u2019s work. Lagos is a very dynamic city and nothing is predictable. Things keep evolving at a fast and constant pace, which make for an interesting narrative. It is a city of many faces and parallels. It is the unpredictability of Lagos which informs my work.<\/span><\/p>\n An artist can approach Lagos as an erratic muse that needs to be disciplined and cuddled at the same time. It can also function as the artist\u2019s ultimate Neverland. I am curious as to why sound became your main form of intervention, although I know you have since begun to work with video and photography as well, which we will get to in a moment. But let\u2019s talk sound first.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n If you have ever been to Lagos you will understand why sound is my preferred medium. One of the first impressions of the city is the intensity of its soundscapes. For a first-timer in Lagos, especially if you are from the Global North, it can be a shocking experience to have the city\u2019s soundscapes invading your eardrums. But my forage into sound art actually began after I attended the media class on the audible spectrum taught by the Austrian multimedia artist Harald Scherz at the Winter Academy in Fayoum, Egypt in 2008. Upon returning to Lagos, I began experimenting with sound. I remember receiving a phone call from a friend around that time. This friend, who lives in Abuja, Nigeria\u2019s political capital, was visiting Lagos. After fifteen seconds into our conversation, I asked him if he was in Lagos because I could pick up the distinctive Lagos soundscapes in the background. He was startled that I knew that he was in Lagos. He had wanted to pay me a surprise visit. In a sense that phone call opened my ears to the uniqueness of the sounds of my city. So I started to listen, record, and experiment with these sounds. The more I recorded and listened, the more I appreciated their power to immerse and transport the listener. I find sound more engaging than any other medium.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nAUGUST 13TH, 2013<\/span><\/h2>\n
Emeka Ogboh\u2019s Experimental Videos <\/span><\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n
and Soundscapes of Lagos<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n
![\"Lagos-soundscapes-659x439\"](\"http:\/\/kalamu.com\/neogriot\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/Lagos-soundscapes-659x439.jpg\")
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