Institutional

Art takes on different meanings when it enters a public or institutional space. It can preserve a cultural memory, shape the character of a workplace, create a sense of place within a hospitality environment, or invite new audiences into a conversation with art.

SMO Contemporary Art works with institutions and organisations across diverse sectors to develop and deliver projects that place art within meaningful cultural, architectural, and public contexts. Our institutional practice spans heritage conservation and archival work, exhibition development, art selection and installation, and the integration of contemporary art into corporate, hospitality, healthcare, retail, and public spaces.

 

 Our work includes the conservation of heritage artworks and archival documentation of deteriorating materials within the historic National Theatre building, as well as art installations and collections for organisations across the corporate and hospitality sectors. 

  • Our exhibition practice extends into public and cultural spaces, including exhibitions at the National Museum, as well as public-facing projects with Hogan Lovells and the Lagos Court of Arbitration. Across these varied contexts, our approach remains rooted in careful curation considering the character of each institution, its audience, its architecture, and the role art can play within the space.

     

    From safeguarding historic works to creating new encounters with contemporary African art, these projects reflect SMO Contemporary Art’s commitment to preserving cultural heritage, supporting artists, and creating meaningful experiences through art.

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    The National Theatre Conservation Project

    Few projects speak as profoundly to the relationship between art, heritage, and national identity as SMO Contemporary Art’s work at the National Theatre in Lagos. As part of the historic refurbishment of one of Nigeria’s most important cultural monuments, we had the privilege of leading the conservation, restoration, documentation, and curatorial development of its significant modernist art collection.
    With over 70 historic works by major Nigerian artists including Erhabor Emokpae, Yusuf Grillo, Isiaka Osunde, Lamidi Fakeye, Felix Idubor, Agbo Folarin and Amos Odion, the National Theatre has arguably the most significant collection of modernist art held in a public institution in Nigeria today.

  • A sizeable number of the works are architectural embellishments specifically commissioned to not only enhance the theatre complex built in 1976, but also to herald FESTAC'77. Diverse in media and embracing themes of celebration, they range from stained-glass and mosaic murals to reliefs in wood, polyester resin and copper, used to fashion friezes and column accents. The collection also boasts of several remarkable free-standing sculptures in wood, ciment fondu and wrought iron.
    It is our great joy that the project work has been completed to high standards, and that all the artworks have been restored to their former glory, and in many places, the presentation has been improved significantly.
     The conservation archive, where hundreds of objects of historic significance which we recovered, were carefully catalogued and archived. The open source database will be a valuable national asset for Nigeria and for local and international research.
    It has been a great honor for SMO to serve as the curator of the National Theatre art collection, and we are proud to have contributed to this historic project restoring one of Nigeria's national treasures.
    Our heartfelt appreciation goes to the talented artists, conservators, art historians, and local and international experts who collaborated with us, and we thank SANEF, the Banker's Committee, and the Central Bank of Nigeria for their trust and support in making this project possible.

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    SMO is delighted to have been appointed Curator of the Afreximbank Art Collect Programme for their newly completed African Trade Centre in Abuja.The appointment was the result of a rigorous competitve bid process, and we are delighted to finally be a part of this dynamic team.
    The collection is a work-in-progress, and we are honored to work with some of the finest artists from across Africa and the Diaspora, to celebrate the bold vision of Pan-Africanism and a transformed Africa through the continent's leading and emerging creative voices.