Abstract: | Aim of this paper is to make a full appraisal of the development of art education in Nigeria, and to identify and analyse the contributions which not only religion, society and the government, but also other agencies of art education have made to the growth (or decline) of art as a discipline. Before the arrival of missionaries and colonialists, traditional art education was based on the apprenticeship system. The origin of modern art education dates back to the latter part of the first half of the 19th century when Christian missionaries set foot on Nigerian soil. One man whose pioneering efforts led to the introduction of art in the school curriculum and, eventually, to the foundation of modern art education in Nigeria, was Aina Onabolu. In the early 1960s a group of artists and art patrons got together to launch the Mbari Club in Ibadan. The folk artist is educated at school as well as in the apprenticeship system. Other agencies that play a role in art education are the Ministry of Education, the Society of Nigerian Artists, and the National Museum. Ref. |