The manager Orisun Art Gallery Abuja, Mr Femi Coker, has said Prof. Bruce Onobrakpeya will participate at a maiden exhibition to raise awareness for children living with autism.
He said the therapeutic potential of art will be used in encouraging and galvanizing support for these children who need special care.
He made this known in a statement, adding that the gallery will use this exhibition to align with the activities of the United Nations which sets April aside as autism awareness month.
He said the gallery in collaboration with Engr. (Mrs) Tagbo-Okeke, will organise a first-of-its-kind art exhibition, to commemorate the event, bringing together in an art exhibition Prof. Bruce Onobrakpeya, a quintessential master artist and educator and the prodigious autistic teenage artist, Kanye Tagbo-Okeke, from the 29th of April at the gallery.
The exhibition is tagged: The Master and The Prodigy.
“Art universally is known to be therapeutic, the possession of this special gift, its development and utilisation, has been used over the ages, to inspire, to challenge, to galvanise people to action, to draw attention to global causes, to address social ills and to document the evolution of time,” he said.
The cultural advocate said one of the core objectives of Orisun Art Gallery, is to use art and the gallery as a platform to stimulate the consciousness of communities and engage their attention on the very important role of art, in addressing some fundamental issues bordering on health and well-being, that should be dear to our heart.
“Autism spectrum disorder is one of such. And it is a serious developmental disorder, that impairs the ability to communicate and interact. It impacts the nervous system, leading to obsessive interests and compulsive behaviours. Treatment for this disorder can help, but unfortunately, this condition cannot be cured.
“Therefore, children with autism have a special need for care and attention. Some of them face discrimination and abuses because their conditions are not properly diagnosed and also because the awareness out in the public is not adequate enough.
As art is very instructive to teaching and learning, visual art particularly has a resonance that captures the attention of all the categories of people,” he said.
Coker also added that the event will honour the immense contribution of Prof. Onobrakpeya to the art industry, spanning over six decades, as a special guest and to spotlight the incredible talent of Kanye Tagbo-Okeke and more importantly to create more awareness for autism.
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