Satire, Displacement And Resilience: Nigerian Painters And The Politics Of Governance And Healing

Abstract

This paper examines how contemporary Nigerian painters engage with the crises of governance, displacement, and trauma in the postcolonial state. Through a semiotic and postcolonial reading of six works by Chike Obeagu, Jerry Buhari, and Harrison Idahosa, the study shows how visual strategies of satire, fragmented landscapes, and childhood symbolism serve as cultural critiques and tools of resilience. Obeagu’s “Reconciliation Table” and “Cork and Bull Story” deploy satire to expose elite hypocrisy and the reduction of governance to personal indulgence. Buhari’s “Japa” and “Wise Men at the City Gate” document displacement and environmental neglect, functioning as counter-archives of collective memory. Idahosa’s “The Less You See the Better” and “Echoes” foreground psychological dimensions of trauma through motifs of blindfolds, plaster marks, graffiti, and crowns, affirming dignity amidst fragility. Together, these works demonstrate that Nigerian painting is not confined to aesthetics but operates as non-verbal policy advocacy and social healing. The paper concludes that art in Nigeria must be integrated into governance discourse, not only as cultural heritage but also as a medium for critique, memory, and recovery in a society shaped by recurring crises.