Tutu the Africa Mona Lisa Painting that was Sold for £1.1m :History and Details.

'Christine' by 20th century master of African modernism Ben Enwonwu.
Tutu

"The African Mona Lisa "Ben Enwonwu's 1974 painting of Adetutu "Tutu" Ademiluyi, daughter of a Yoruba king, has taken on almost mythical status in the present day Nigeria.The works became symbols of peace following the Nigerian-Biafran war of 1967-1970. Enwonwu was from a politically-connected Ibo family and his father was a traditional sculptor. Enwonwu stumbled upon his most famous painting  by accident.
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 "He would go around local villages and sketch local scenes and figures, and he encountered this young woman whom he thought was just entrancing and requested to paint her, not knowing her stature," and he painter her but the art work turn out to be astonishing by using a different ethic group from his own origin of Ibo tribe,it was an artwork that brought hope for peace in Nigeria again between the Ibos and the rest of Nigeria. Ben  was at the peak of his career,also an icon of hope for the oppress after the war.

He wasn't just painting the girl, he was painting the whole tradition. It's a symbol of hope and regeneration to Nigeria after the civil war that killed more than 3 millions Biafran's it's a symbol of the phoenix rising and the rise of a new Nation after the war.

The Painting Symbolize Peace,The sitter is Yoruba and Ben Enwonwu was Ibo, so they were of different ethnic tribes,It was an important symbol of reconciliation."

Enwonwu, who died in 1994, is considered the father of Nigerian modernism. He made three paintings of Tutu, the locations of all of which had been a mystery until the recent discovery. The work was uncovered by Giles Peppiatt, director of Modern African Art at Bonhams, after a north London family contacted him following lucrative recent sales of Nigerian artworks.


The rediscovered painting was last displayed at the Italian embassy in Lagos in 1975, and was bought by the father of the north London family during a business trip.It has been a legendary painting for 40 years.

 Recently it was up for sale  at auction in London on Tuesday for a staggering £1.1m  with the help of Google search, after the family who owned it googled the signature and realized its importance.

"The family were unaware of the significance of the painting or the importance of the artist, until a chance 'googling' of the signature led them to Sotheby's free Online Estimate Platform," said the London auction house.

The painting fetched over seven times the pre-auction estimate, finally going under the hammer for £1.1m


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But  Enwonwu "Tutu" Ademiluyi  portrait is a national icon in Nigeria and is called the Africa Mona Lisa .The real name of the art work is "Tutu"  a Yoruba name.


By Parish Pascal
Editor Binnabook Publishers

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Binnabook Magazine Believes in Free Speech,Social Journalism with newsgathering and verification of Data.

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