Jelili Atiku to Perform in Lagos as 1922 Revisited Opens West Africa Edition

Third Space Art Foundation and CCA Lagos present 4 November performance, 7 November panel exploring African cultural memory, colonial archives, and restitution

NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, November 4, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Internationally recognized Nigerian performance artist Jelili Atiku will present Eyes No Dey Forget Wetin Heart See on Wednesday, 4 November, at the National Museum in Onikan, Lagos, as part of the West Africa edition of 1922 Revisited, an international contemporary arts initiative presented by Third Space Art Foundation in partnership with the Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos (CCA Lagos).

The public performance, scheduled for 4:00–5:00 p.m., will feature a ritual procession beginning at the National Museum, traveling through historic Military Street and King George V Road, and returning to the museum. The work examines cultural memory, colonial histories, identity, and the relationship between public space and Indigenous knowledge.

The Lagos program launches the West Africa edition of 1922 Revisited, and follows 1922 Revisited’s May 2026 intruduction during the Venice Biennale preview week in Italy, extending an international artistic inquiry into African cultural heritage and historical representation.

Jelili Atiku Explores Cultural Memory Through Performance

Atiku’s Eyes No Dey Forget Wetin Heart See draws on Yoruba spiritual traditions, ritual movement, and the historical geography of Lagos to examine how communities remember and interpret their past.

The performance follows a symbolic figure described as part spirit and part traveler, moving through the city as a connection between past, present, and future.

Beginning at the National Museum, the procession extends into surrounding streets, connecting the institutional preservation of cultural heritage with the living cultural landscape of Lagos.

The work addresses colonial violence, displacement, cultural fragmentation, restitution, and belonging.

Atiku is an internationally recognized Nigerian performance artist and sculptor whose multidisciplinary practice engages with political power, social justice, environmental concerns, and Yoruba cosmology.

A recipient of the 2015 Prince Claus Award, he frequently incorporates symbolic objects, ritual gestures, and public participation into performances that examine contemporary social and historical conditions.

His participation in 1922 Revisited connects the program’s investigation of historical representation with contemporary artistic practices rooted in African cultural experience.

From the 1922 Venice Biennale to Lagos

1922 Revisited takes its historical starting point from the presentation of 33 African sculptures at the 1922 Venice Biennale.

The initiative examines how African cultural objects were historically collected, classified, and exhibited within European institutions, and how contemporary artists can reconsider those histories through performance.

The program’s first 2026 edition took place in Venice from 5–9 May 2026, bringing African and diasporic artists into dialogue with the historical exhibition.

The West African edition expands that inquiry to questions of colonial extraction, cultural displacement, restitution, and Indigenous knowledge.

Rather than treating historical archives as complete accounts of cultural experience, the program considers how performance, oral traditions, embodied memory, and contemporary artistic practice can contribute alternative perspectives.

The movement from Venice to Lagos also places the discussion within a West African cultural setting, connecting historical questions about representation with contemporary artistic and intellectual practices.

CCA Lagos Hosts 7 November Panel on Decolonizing the Archive

The program continues Saturday, 7 November, with Decolonizing the Archive Through Performance, a public discussion at CCA Lagos, 9 McEwen Street, Yaba, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

The panel brings together artists, scholars, curators, and Indigenous knowledge practitioners to examine how performance can challenge colonial interpretations of history and contribute to discussions about cultural restitution.

Participants include Jelili Atiku; Lagos-based visual and performance artist Taiwo Aiyedogbon; multidisciplinary artist and educator Tolulope Ami-Williams; critic and academic researcher Akin Oladimeji; researcher and cultural producer Jumoke Sanwo; and Babaláwo Ifámúyìwá Akínwùmí Awóníran, a practitioner and scholar of Ifá and Yoruba spiritual traditions.

The discussion will be moderated by Oyindamola Faithful, a curator and cultural producer whose experience includes CCA Lagos, the Lagos Biennial, and international arts programming.

The panel will explore how historical archives can be reconsidered through artistic practice, including the roles of oral history, ritual, embodied knowledge, and collective memory.

It will also consider whether cultural restitution can encompass not only the return of objects but also the recovery and transmission of cultural knowledge.
International Collaboration and Cultural Exchange

The West African edition is presented by Third Space Art Foundation in partnership with CCA Lagos.

Additional program partners include Foundation for Contemporary Art–Ghana, UARK Art, The Africa Center, and NEWMEDIA.COM.

The collaboration connects artists, scholars, and cultural institutions across Africa, Europe, and the United States.

Through its Venice and West Africa Lagos editions, 1922 Revisited creates opportunities for contemporary artists to investigate historical narratives while engaging audiences in discussions about cultural heritage, artistic expression, and the continuing relevance of Indigenous knowledge.

Key Event Information

November 4, 2026: Jelili Atiku, Eyes No Dey Forget Wetin Heart See. 4:00–5:00 p.m. National Museum, Onikan, Lagos.
November 7, 2026: Decolonizing the Archive Through Performance. 10:30 a.m.–12:15 p.m. Centre for Contemporary Art, Lagos, 9 McEwen Street, Yaba.

About Third Space Art Foundation

Third Space Art Foundation is a nonprofit arts organization supporting contemporary artistic practice, interdisciplinary research, and international cultural dialogue. Through performances, exhibitions, and collaborative programming, the foundation connects artists, scholars, and cultural institutions in the exploration of historical narratives, cultural memory, and artistic expression.

Its 1922 Revisited initiative examines the historical representation of African cultural heritage through contemporary performance and critical inquiry.
For more information, visit Third Space Art Foundation’s official website, at: https://thirdspaceartfoundation.org/

About CCA Lagos

The Centre for Contemporary Art, CCA Lagos, is an independent non-profit making visual art organization founded in December 2007 by Bisi Silva (1962 – 2019). The centre provides a platform for the development, presentation, and discussion of contemporary visual art and culture. It seeks to create new audiences and to prioritise media such as photography, film and video, performance and installation art which have been under-represented in Nigeria.

For more information, visit The Centre for Contemporary Art’s official website, at: https://ccalagos.org/

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