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Nkiru Nzegwu (born March 22,1954) is a Nigerian philosopher,art historian,scholar,curator,and painter. Since 2019,she has been a Distinguished Professor for Research at State University of New York at Binghamton.[1][2][3]
Nzegwu was born to parents of Igbo ethnicity in Onitsha,Nigeria. She went on to study at the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University),where she received both her BA and MA[4]. Before academia,she went on to engage in media production as a radio producer and graphic designer,as well as service with the nation's youth service corps in Ondo State (1976–1977){{Citation needed}}. She also took part in Voices of Nigeria (1981-1983) the onset of her artistic work.[5]
Nzegwu went on to receive a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Ottawa in 1989.[6] Nzegwu’s dissertation Encounters in Aesthetic Appreciation observed challenging theories of aesthetics,under Andrew Lugg[7].
Philosophical career
When she first began at The State University of New York at Binghamton,she was in both the philosophy and art history departments,where she earned her tenure in 1996.[8] Later,she moved her philosophy appointment into African Studies. She moved her art history line to the Interpretation and Culture (PIC) graduate program,where she served as the coordinator.[8] She has taught at Binghamton University for over twenty-five years where she specializes in feminist/African women's studies,African philosophy,and African diaspora art.[8] Some courses she offered including,'Philosophy of Orisha worship,' 'African Women and Feminism,' and 'Philosophy of Colonialism' were the first ever university courses in the United States on these topics.[8]
Writings on family structure
In 2006,Nzegwu wrote a book entitled Family Matters:Feminist Concepts in African Philosophy of Culture,[9] this book explored the structures of Igbo families and the concepts of feminism that existed within them. In the book,she studies African families through the lens of contemporary human rights and the need for a re-evaluation of these traditional ideas,considering the modern rulings by judges towards women that selectively appeal to culture and the interpretation of traditions.[9]
She emphasizes the importance of differentiating between conceptions of African family and society rooted in the viewpoint of the British anthropologist,whose views developed within the ideology of imperialism because they misrepresent the precolonial Igbo family.[citation needed] To avoid misrepresentation,she says her studies were centered on an understanding of the political nature and distribution of rights and entitlements within the Igbo family.[9]
She focuses her area of study on northwestern Igboland,a region that,prior to colonization,was a non-gendered and non-patriarchal society.[9] She states that families in this region were not dominated by men's control,nor was their sole purpose to serve the needs of men. She claims the early Christian missionaries and colonial anthropologist viewed the society through their patriarchal and male-privileging values that make up Western epistemology.[9]
She believes that the problems of gender subordination within Africa are subsequently traced to European colonial policies and the African man's one-sided construction of a family is due to colonial imposition. She says that the African man's viewpoint led to patriarchal consciousness that privileges the male view. She associates the redefined women's identity as solely a "wife," and their level of dependency status correlates to colonial policies,as well as showing the parallels.[10]
Intellectual contributions and theoretical framework
Nzegwu's work pushes feminist theory.[11] A core claim she makes throughout her work emphasizes how Western systems,when imposed on African societies,dismantle African frameworks. For instance,gender is often treated as a male and female binary,a framework which does not map neatly onto African societies.[12] She introduces the concept of "dual-sex system," where Igbo men and women organized in political groups. This structure led to a level of autonomy and political power for African women.[13] Nzegwu argues that colonial supplanting through laws and policies dismantled these systems that once upheld independence of women.
Nzegwu has also explored the morality of motherhood within a communal Igbo context,where values and the relational nature of African people can be tied back to the relationship between a mother and child. In her essay "The Epistemological Challenge of Motherhood to Patriliny," she makes the claim that a child's awareness of right and wrong stems from their mother,and this early relationship impacts how the child relates to other people.[14] From this perspective,the mother-child bond expands to the way one relates to their community. According to Nzegwu,Igbo communal life and ethics are fashioned through the notion of motherhood,where breaking ties of relationship leads to a crippled community. She claims colonial anthropologists operating from the idea that wives were subordinate to their husbands dismissed motherhood from a social aspect. With this claim,Nzegwu attempts to reaffirm the role that motherhood plays within Igbo society. She explains that colonial literature could not have recognized this due to a constricted worldview.[14]
In her essay,"Omummu:Disassembling Subordination and Reasserting Endogenous Powers" (2020),Nzegwu further develops her claims from a political perspective.[citation needed] She analyzes Ikporo-Onitsha,an organization made up of adult daughters who establish omummu,to explain the role of motherhood in politics. For her work,omummu represents autonomy among women. Nzegwu also discusses the role of the omo or Queen Mother as a representative of authority who lends her voice to many conversations,even control over the military.[15]
Her 2006 monograph Family Matters is heavily quoted throughout the practice of African studies,women's studies,post-colonial studies,and African feminist theory.[12] Lewis R. Gordon recognized her works and claims "she has created her place in Africana philosophy."[16]
Art history
Nzegwu has had a long career in art history,visual art,and curation.[citation needed] These roles coincide with her work in academia,researching and writing,continuing the work of establishing pre-colonial Africa through creative interpretation. A major theme throughout her artwork is the assumptions of Africa and the misinterpretations that exist as a result of colonialism. In the Journal of Aesthics and Art Criticism,Nzegwu argues with artist Susan Vogel and Arthur Danto that make claims about African conception of art which Nzegwu heavily critiques as Euro centered.[17] In 2018,she wrote an essay in Journal of Art Historiography analyzing oriki as a Yoruba art form based on Rowland Abiodun's work. Her claim posited that African art must be evaluated through its original cultural framework,based on where it came from,as opposed to imposed Western structures.[18]
She continues the work of decolonizing concepts around gender and African women,using literature. Nzegwu has edited two volumes on Nigerian and Contemporary African art in the 1990s. Issues in Contemporary African Art (1998)[19] and Contemporary Textures:Multidimensionality in Nigerian Art (1999),[20] are her original essays. She also played a role in editing major works such as a chapter in A Companion to African Philosophy,edited by Kwasi Wiredu in 2004,and wrote an entry on "African Diasporic art" for the Encyclopedia of the African Diaspora in 2008.[6]
Nzegwu curated exhibitions across the diaspora in the United States,Canada,and Nigeria. She has had shows at the Art Gallery of Toronto,The Power Plant,and A Space.[6] She has also had shows at the Mitchell Museum in Illinois and Lagos in 1989. She founded her own gallery,Onira Arts Africa gallery in Ottawa,one of the earliest galleries in Canada dedicated specifically to African art.[6] Afterwards,she created Africa House in New York,a multipurpose cultural space as well as art gallery,highlighting African visual art.[6]
She was an associate producer on the documentary Nigerian Art:Kindred Spirits (1996),a Smithsonian documentary.[21][22][23] This documentary explores the life of Nigerian Art and puts into question whether many pieces derive from tradition or modernism. The documentary also grapples with who the artists are and how they have impacted the culture of Nigeria. The documentary included notable artists such as sculptor Ben Enwonsu,whose work emphasizes traditional masquerade and African belief systems,and environment-themed paintings by Ona Brekpaya. This film was executive produced by Adrian Malone and directed and produced by Carrol Parrot Blue. The themes of Nzegwu's work can be seen through the shaping of questioning and observations that strengthened the film.[21]
Teaching
Nzegwu has contributed a great deal to academic institutions across the African diaspora. Through her work as a professor at Binghamton University,she has been integral to African feminism. Her teachings across disciplines such as art and history have attempted to bridge the gaps her research highlights.[11]
Her journey through mentorship began with her work as a journal founder and editor of JENdA:A Journal of Culture and African Women Studies,West Africa Review.[12] Her journal consisted of many peer reviews. Ijele:Art Journal of the African World and Journal of African Philosophy are projects Nzegwu established to make space for the voices of the future,writing about critical topics within Africa.[6]
Nzegwu's multi-disciplinary skills teach junior scholars that they can move between many disciplines and/or focus areas such as philosophy,art,digital publishing,and many more.[6] Her website africaresource.com is an educational website that "features content that raises awareness of conversations taking place in African communities on topics ranging from feminism to economic development."[24] This site has had over 10 million visitors and has received a “Best of the Web”citation from PBS."[25]
As of March2026[update],she is teaches a variety of college courses at Binghamton University. Nzegwu served as Chair of the Africana Studies department in two terms ranging from 2003 to 2006 and 2007 to 2010. More recently,she served as the coordinator of the Philosophy,Interpretation and Culture from 2014 to 2017.[6]
Her focus areas have ranged from decolonization of contemporary art to burial grounds in New York. Nzegwu has also created institutions of her own such as becoming President of the International Society for African Philosophy and Studies from 2001 to 2004. From 2004 to 2010 she served as chair of the Igbo Studies Association. Her current project to develop research across the diaspora is called the Africa Knowledge Project. [6]
Scholarly accomplishments
In 2020,she began a three-year appointment as Professor Extraordinarious in the School of Transdisciplinary Research and Graduate Studies at the University of South Africa. She was the Nelson Mandela Visiting Professor at Rhodes University in 2023-2024.[26]
Nzegwu is "one of the original founding editors"[27] of the award-winning[28]JENdA:A Journal of Culture and African Women Struggles,as well as creating Ijele:Art Journal of the African World.[6] She currently serves on the Advisory Board forThe Black Scholar journal[29] and is the Managing Editor for the Journal on African Philosophy.[30]
In 2010,she founded The African Knowledge Project,that aims to promote and disseminate "Africa-centered,evidence-based knowledge on Africa and African Diaspora."[31][32]
Nzegwu, Nkiru, ed. (1998). Issues in Contemporary African Art. International Society for the Study of Africa (ISSA) at Binghamton University. ISBN9781892627001.
Nzegwu, Nkiru, ed. (1999). Contemporary Textures: Multidimensionality in Nigerian Art. International Society for the Study of Africa (ISSA) at Binghamton University. ISBN9781892627018.
Nzegwu, Nkiru (2020) “Temporality, Oriki and Nigeria’s Contemporary Art.” In “Aesthetic Temporalities Today”. Ed. Gabrielle Genge and Angela Stercken. Colombia University Press. Pp. 87-100.
Family Matters: Feminist Concepts in African Philosophy of Culture. Albany, NY: SUNY Pres, 2006.
The New African Diaspora. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2009. (co-editor, with Isidore Okpewho)
His Majesty Nnaemeka Alfred Ugochukwu Achebe: A Ten-Year Milestone. Endicott, NY: Africa Resource Press, 2013. (editor)
Onitsha at the Millennium: Legacy, History and Transformation. Endicott, NY: Africa Resource Press, 2013 (editor)
Rethinking Motherhood: African and Nordic Perspectives. Endicott, NY: Africa Resource Press, 2020 (co-editor, with Signe Arfred)
↑"Nkiru Nzegwu". buala.org. Buala, open-access website for multiple voices from Africa, Brazil, Europe, and beyond. Launched in 2010 by Marta Lança. Retrieved 2 November 2023. Philosopher, art historian and the current chair of Africana Studies Department has taught for over ten years at State University of New York at Binghamton. Professor Nkiru Nzegwu introduced first-ever courses at Binghamton University such as Philosophy of Orisha Worship, Hip-Hop I and Hip-Hop II.
12345Nzegwu, Nkiru (2006). Family Matters: Feminist Concepts in African Philosophy of Culture. SUNY Series, Feminist Philosophy. Ithaca: State University of New York Press. ISBN978-0-7914-8182-0.
↑Nzegwu, Nkiru, ed. (1998). Issues in contemporary African art. Binghamton, NY: International Society for the Study of Africa ISSA at Binghamton University. ISBN978-1-892627-00-1.
↑Nzegwu, Nkiru, ed. (1999). Contemporary textures: multidimensionality in Nigerian art. Binghamton, N.Y: International Society for the Study of Africa, Binghamton University. ISBN978-1-892627-01-8.
12Nigerian Art – Kindred Spirits on YouTube. Video duration 57m 57 s. Uploader VHS Ark, 2016. WETA-TV and the Smithsonian Institution, 1990. Executive producer Adrian Malone, producer: Caroll Parrott Blue, associate producers Kalindi Corens and Nkiry Nzegwu.
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