CULTURAL EMANCIPATION AS AN EFFECTIVE APPROACH TO SUSTENANCE OF CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN VISUAL ARTS

Culture drives values for stability, progress, and legacy through art that reinforces norms and authority. Nigeria's culture faces Western influence: a mix of good and bad. External forces reshape local stories and change identity. Visual artists struggle as traditions fade, practices vanish, and patronage drops. This research pushes back against Western narratives, redefines traditional Nigerian art, and highlights artistic skill as key to cultural identity. This paper explores Nigeria's art history: pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial, using qualitative analysis to unpack the identity and cultural significance of artistic works. The study analyses how Western narratives interpret Nigerian art through a physical lens, contrasting with Nigeria's cultural context. However, understanding the visual arts' impact on cultural expression within Nigeria's ethnic groups, particularly the Yoruba, is vital. This paper tackles these challenges, offers solutions, and advocates for cultural emancipation to boost visual arts patronage. The paper used secondary data from journals, textbooks, newspapers, and online publications. It applied dividuation and formalism theories to analyse Nigerian traditional and contemporary arts, covering innovation, philosophy, and ideology. Finally, the paper suggests that Nigeria's government team up with royal institutions to sponsor cultural activities. Besides, a policy should be put in place to rescue cultural activities from extinction.  Keywords: Culture, Sustenance, Visual Arts, and Yoruba,