Promoting Cultural Tourism through Art Exhibitions: A Case Study of National Gallery Of Art Igbo-Ukwu Southeast Nigeria
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Date
2016
Authors
Okoye, O.C.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
West African Archaeological Association
Abstract
Art exhibition entails public display or collection of art objects in a gallery, often times
providing opportunity to showcase a people’s cultural heritage, the artists and their works.
When art exhibitions are carried out in rural communities by a National Art Gallery, it has the
potential of promoting tourism, and encouraging budding artists in the locality. This study
examines the extent to which the National Gallery of Art, Igbo-Ukwu, southeast Nigeria, promote
tourism in Igbo-Ukwu through art exhibitions, with a view to establishing the impacts of these
exhibitions. Data gathering techniques employed are: participant observation, key informant
interview focus group discussions and photography. The study discovers that art exhibitions in
National Gallery of Art Igbo-Ukwu have contributed to promoting tourism, skill acquisition and
income generation to the artists in the community and neighbouring towns. The gallery provides
platform for budding artists to exchange ideas with more established artists, and at the same
time make young people to see art as a viable profession. The study recommends that the
exhibitions should be publicized more to increase wider participation of artists and tourists
Description
Scholarly article
Keywords
National Gallery of Art , Rural Communities , Tourism , Art Exhibitions , Research Subject Categories::SOCIAL SCIENCES::Social sciences::Education
Citation
.) Obiageli C. Okoye. 2016. Promoting Cultural Tourism through Art Exhibitions: A Case Study of National Gallery Of Art Igbo-Ukwu Southeast Nigeria. West African Journal of Archaeology, 46 (2): 249-261.