By Prisca Sam-Duru
It was a great time at the Mike Adenuga/Alliance Francais Lagos, last week as Artists, guests and BIC executives gathered to celebrate this year’s winners of BIC Art Master Africa Competition amidst discussion on building a sustainable career in the African art industry. The competition which was contested by artists across Africa was dominated by Nigerian ballpoint artists with Nosakhare Igbinosa winning first place for his portrait titled, ‘Bona’.
Artist Hezekiah Okon for his portrait titled, ‘Proudly an African’, ranked second; and artists Moses Ojeleye for portrait titled, ‘Amaka’, and Dumbor Debeeh for portrait ‘Echoes of joy’, took the third place. Hezekiah Okon’s ‘Proudly an African’ was also announced the National Nigerian winner. Winning entries were chosen out of a total of 6,574 pieces submitted, marking a significant increase from last year, Art Master Africa winner received a cash prize of $2,000, while second and third place winners received prizes of $1,000 and $500 respectively. National winners received cash prizes of $500 each as well as BIC hampers.
This year’s edition of the art competition themed ‘Celebrating Africa’ encouraged artists to create artworks that represent their personal identity as well as their unique perceptions of the African continent and its diverse cultures using the BIC ballpoint pen. Three Art Master Africa competition winners and six national winners from countries across the region including South Africa, Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, Morocco, and Tunisia were announced. The national winners across Africa included: Uganda: Celebrating Africa in Harmony with Wildlife by artist Maiku Fred; Kenya: African Culture portrait by Griffin Lundi and South Africa: Imwe hamwe na Kamere (One with Nature) by Romeon Mwiseneza. Others are, Morocco: Mother Africa by Essadik Laila and Tunisia: Africa with my pen by Mouhamed Boudhri.
Highlight of the occasion was a panel discussion with Claire Idera, visual artist and Influencer; Fola David, hyperrealist and speed painter and Oscar Ukonu, visual and ballpoint pen artist. It was moderated by Jola Ayeye.The panelists emphasised that building an art space or community where artists of like minds can come together to share ideas and innovative artistic creation, could be a route to success in the art industry. Speaking on the success of the competition, General Manager at BIC Nigeria, Guillaume Groues, said: “In its fifth edition, Art Master Africa continues to shine a light on ballpoint pen artists as they express themselves through creativity.
Our flagship competition has seen tremendous growth year-on-year with higher participation numbers especially from Nigeria. We are proud of the platform that we have created for Nigerian youth and of the phenomenal artwork produced. The results this year are a testament to the Nigerian youth’s creativity and their dedication to the art industry.” Also, Director Alliance Française de Lagos, Marc Brebant, said: “Alliance Française de Lagos is delighted to host at its premises, the first-of-its-kind BIC Art Master Africa exhibition. Alliance Française and BIC share a mutual mission that aims to promote art, culture, and education amongst youth.
BIC has been a part of everyone’s childhood and it’s refreshing to see that the brand continues to be a part of people’s lives through various passion points.” First place winner, Nosakhare Igbinosa, also expressed his delight, saying: “I am ecstatic about winning first place in the Art Master Africa 2022 competition. This is my third attempt at applying for the renowned ballpoint pen competition and I am grateful for the achievement and my persistence and perseverance. I am glad that companies like BIC exist, providing a platform for self-expression through art and creativity.”
The Art Master Africa competition is an annual competition that invites artists to creatively develop art pieces using the iconic BIC Ball Pen. The competition was launched in South Africa in 2017 after which it expanded into the wider region in 2019 and into the Middle East in 2021.BIC has long been connected to art and regularly celebrates the creativity and originality of talented individuals. It has a number of established partnerships with art institutes around the world and has its products displayed in a number of renowned museums globally.
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