Bruce Onobrakpeya (1932) - Emiovbo Beroma

Bruce Onobrakpeya (Nigeria, born 1932)
Title of the work: Emiovbo Beroma (Lament), 1983
Technique: Ivorex plastograph on panel, Lagos

Work created in 1983 by Bruce Onobrakpeya, a major figure in Nigerian modern and contemporary art, Emiovbo Beroma belongs to an emblematic series of plastographs developed in Lagos at the beginning of the 1980s.

The vertical composition presents a collective figurative structure, built by superposition and interlocking of stylized bodies, organized according to a hieratic and totemic logic. The drawing, treated in incised lines and repetitive motifs, incorporates graphic and geometric signs characteristic of the artist's visual vocabulary, directly inspired by Urhobo and Benin traditions as well as his post‑Zaria formal explorations.

The work is executed using the so‑called Ivorex plastograph technique, an experimental process developed by Bruce Onobrakpeya, situated at the crossroads of intaglio printing, bas‑relief, and relief printing on rigid support. The green background, textured and uneven, heightens the contrast with the clear, slightly raised drawing, giving the whole a strong material presence.

Unlike the more common paper multiples, this piece is realized on mounted rigid panel, constituting an autonomous work and not a mere print.

Details
Artist: Bruce Onobrakpeya (Nigeria, born 1932)
Title: Emiovbo Beroma (often translated or interpreted as Lament)
Date: 1983
Place of creation: Lagos, Nigeria
Technique: Ivorex plastograph
Support: rigid panel
Presentation: metal frame
Provenance: Oviomaro Gallery, Lagos (original label on the back)
Inscriptions: work titled, dated, located and signed on the verso
Condition: good overall condition, patina and light signs of wear consistent with age