After two years of a conceptual and engaging maiden exhibition of Beyond Function 1, the duo of Djakou Kassi Nathalie and Ato Arinze have returned with Beyond Function 2, which gives a bold and courageous approach to subject matter and style.

The joint exhibition at the Quintessence Gallery, Ikoyi, Lagos runs from June 9th till June 24th. The works that are presented in this show offers a marked contrast and deviation from the functionality label that is consciously or unconsciously tagged on ceramics.

Ato and Nathalie’s works are strongly different in content and style. Born in Cameroun, Nathalie lived and taught in Cameroun before moving to Nigeria. Ato on the other hand studied in Nigeria. The fact that they both grew up in different environments has a major influence on their works.

For Ato, the Nigerian landscape offers an array of opportunities to define and conceptualize his art. He alludes to socio-political situations with simple shapes and sound content. Nathalie’s works neither questions nor alludes to socio-political happenings – spontaneity and primacy of the gestural treatment of the fragile medium is central to her works.

Ato’s oeuvre offers a trajectory into the rumbles and chaos of the society. He is deeply concerned by the agony and hardship that the people experience occasionally and positions himself as a social commentator who participates in public comments through conceptual art. In Bullet holes and bullet wounds, the artist presents a commentary on the recent killings in the country by Fulani Herdsmen who attack villages and settlements at will.

The Africa Series offers a call to action to all Africans. The continent will account for more than half of the global population growth in the next few years and Africa is not prepared for this tremendous growth. How will it be prepared when the young continent is ruled by old people? The bold text that reads “Awake” in the series is the artist’s call to Africans to take up the responsibility of transforming, shaping and growing the continent significantly for the benefit of future generations.

With allusive and humorous titles, Djakou Kassi Nathalie confronts her spectators with guilt-ridden content and daily happenings. Facial expressions on the body of her works  attest to a spontaneous play of lines and shapes that has been mastered over time.

In Depression, Nathalie engages the curiosity of the spectator with personal imprisonment. She presents a man with his head buried between his knees in a sitting position. Bits of circular shapes in a repetitive pattern creates translucency and encloses the work in a spherical form. “We are out of jail or in jail because of our actions” was her response in a brisk conversation. Humorous titles like Guests, Hesitation, and Wonders shall never end offers a peep into human reactions to daily happenings.

Both artists employ forms in the service of their ideas and explore elements of art as metaphors for representing situations. Ato’s colours are reminiscent of the current situation in the country – red for the constant killings and gray for mourning. He also employs a wobbled form to delineate the political instability in the country. Nathalie’s facial expressions made with lines and shapes texturizes her works and addresses man as the prime mover of all activities.