The strange world of the Nigerian movie-making industry - dubbed
'Nollywood' - is the source of the subjects in Pieter Hugo's
fascinating photographic series. Hugo's images are not so
much documentary photographs but rather a series of portrait-like
recreations of the kinds of stereotypical characters that populate
Nollywood productions: mummies, demons, zombies and so forth.
On during White Night, 12 March, midday to
midnight. Join the carnival activities, art projects and Steve Abel
and the Chrysalids performing free! concert 8:00pm - 9:00pm
In a continent with a rich tradition of storytelling through
oral and written fiction, extension of this into the mass media
has, until recently, been scarce. Nollywood movies are thus
described as a rare instance of African self-representation in the
mass media. Releasing hundreds of low-budget movies each year for a
primarily African audience, Nollywood rivals Bollywood and exceeds
Hollywood in sheer output, with production characterised by
improvised processes: rudimentary scripts, actors cast on the day
of shooting, low cost equipment and 'real life' settings. It
is not unusual for a movie to be produced and marketed in a
week.
Exploring a realm where myth, movie and reality intertwine,
Pieter Hugo's Nollywood characters are casually posed by actors in
the back-lots of the Nigerian cities of Enugu and Asaba, yet the
images are so strikingly composed and photographed that each one
has an iconic, almost talismanic power. The result is an
unsettling yet enthralling play between the real and the
fantastic.
Hours:
Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm / Sat & Sun, 10am-4pm
IMAGE: Pieter Hugo, Escort Kama,
Enugu, Nigeria 2008. Courtesy Greenaway Art Gallery, Adelaide
and Michael Stevenson Gallery, Cape Town
Nollywood is toured by the Institute of Modern Art,
Brisbane
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tetuhi.org.nz