Blangidi

Nengi Omuku spent 2 weeks at a Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit in London painting a large scale mural for the Family Room. Of her piece, she said ‘The painting was inspired by the name of the room. It is based on two abstract bodies who cater to a central reclined figure, all surrounded by a fabric, ‘Blangidi’. This fabric was introduced to southern Nigeria, my home, by European merchants who used it as a blanket. It however took on a new meaning upon entering the area and became a ceremonial dress that has come to define every major family event. It is a symbol that says, ‘we are together’. The bodies in the painting blend into one another and become a continuous form. They are encircled by the fabric which further intertwines them, creating oneness between material and body.’