Tam Fiofori (born 1942), also known as "Uncle Tam","Tam Fiofiri- The Speed of Thought"
The Pan African Space Station (PASS). is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

documentary photographer. Notable for his albums chronicling Nigeria's history, Fiofori is also a filmmaker, writer, critic and media consultant. The subjects of his films include the Nigerian artists Biodun Olaku, J. D. 'Okhai Ojeikere and Olu Amoda. Much travelled, Fiofori lived in

Harlem, New York Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

, in the 1960s, becoming

Sun Ra Le Sony'r Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, May 22, 1914 – May 30, 1993), better known as Sun Ra, was an American jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, and poet known for his experimental music, "cosmic" philosophy, prolific out ...

's manager, and producing writing that is considered "a founding connection between Ra and the movement that would be known as

Afrofuturism Afrofuturism is a cultural aesthetic, and philosophy of science and history that explores the intersection of the African diaspora culture with science and technology. It addresses themes and concerns of the African diaspora through technocu ...

Early life and education

Born in

Okrika Okrika is an island in Rivers State, Nigeria, capital of the Local Government Area of the same name. The town is situated on an island south of Port Harcourt, making it a suburb of the much larger city. The average elevation of Okrika is 452 me ...

Rivers State Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa Ib ...

, Fiofori grew up in

Benin City Benin City is the capital and largest city of Edo State, Edo State, Nigeria. It is the fourth-largest city in Nigeria according to the 2006 census, after Lagos, Kano (city), Kano, and Ibadan, with a population estimate of about 3,500,000 as of ...

, where his father, Emmanuel Fiofori, taught at

Edo College Edo College is a secondary grammar school in Benin City, Nigeria, the oldest in the Mid-Western Region. It was established in February, 1937 and started as the Benin Middle School with forms, I, II and III. In April 1937, the school, with a total ...

. Fiofori was educated at

King's College, Lagos King's College, Lagos (KCL) is a secondary school in Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria. It was founded on 20 September 1909 with 10 students on its original site at Lagos Island, adjacent to Tafawa Balewa Square. The school admits only male students ...

, going on to university studies at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

, before turning his attention to writing and music.

Career

Travelling extensively since the 1960s, Fiofori became an associate in the US of

. According to the Pan African Space Station, "Uncle Tam later invited Sun Ra to Lagos for

FESTAC 77 Festac '77, also known as the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture (the first was in Dakar, 1966), was a major international festival held in Lagos, Nigeria, from 15 January 1977 to 12 February 1977. The month-long event ce ...

, took him to the

Kalakuta Republic Kalakuta Republic was the name musician and political activist Fela Kuti gave to the communal compound that housed his family, band members, and recording studio. Located at 14 Agege Motor Road, Idi-Oro, Mushin, Lagos, Nigeria, it had a free hea ...

. . . and wrote about it all in the Nigerian journal '' Glendora Review''." Fiofori was the first New Music/Electronic Music Editor for ''

DownBeat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'', and wrote for many other art and literary publications in the US and Europe — among them ''

International Times ''International Times'' (''it'' or ''IT'') is the name of various underground newspapers, with the original title founded in London in 1966 and running until October 1973. Editors included John "Hoppy" Hopkins, David Mair ...

'' and ''Change'' magazine — and has been credited with being "largely responsible for bringing underground black creativity to the American national consciousness in those heady days of the 1970s". His writing has been regularly published over the years in a range of Nigerian outlets, including ''

NEXT Next may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Next'' (1990 film), an animated short about William Shakespeare * ''Next'' (2007 film), a sci-fi film starring Nicolas Cage * '' Next: A Primer on Urban Painting'', a 2005 documentary film Lit ...

'' newspaper, and the blog ''Shèkèrè''."Shèkèrè Columnists , Quintessence by Tam Fiofori"
''Shèkèrè''. Fiofori was a film consultant to

Council for Arts and Culture, the director of Rivers State Documentary Series, and consultant/scriptwriter to NTA Network on Documentaries. He was also founding executive of the Photographers' Association of Nigeria (PAN)."Holloway, Shehu, Arulogun, Fiofori for Honours at Film Fest"
''The Nigerian Voice'', 20 January 2011. His work has been shown in Africa, Europe and the US, including ''Odum and Water Masquerades'' (1974), screened at FESTAC '77,

Tampere Film Festival The Tampere Film Festival ( fi, Tampereen elokuvajuhlat) is a short film festival held every March, mostly at the Finnkino Plevna movie theatre, in Tampere, Finland. It is accredited by the film producers' society FIAPF, and together with the shor ...

, 10th

FESPACO The Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (Festival panafricain du cinéma et de la télévision de Ouagadougou or FESPACO) is a film festival in Burkina Faso, held biennially in Ouagadougou, where the organization is based. It ...

Ouagadougou Ouagadougou ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic centre of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 2,415,266 in 2019. The city's n ...

, 1987,

Pan African Writers' Association The Pan African Writers' Association (PAWA), founded in November 1989, is a Ghana-based cultural institution "born in the larger crucible of Pan Africanism" that is an umbrella body of writers' associations on the African continent and the Diaspo ...

Accra, Ghana Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

, and ''1979: A Peep into History and Culture''. His publications include the "print documentary" ''A Benin Coronation: Oba Erediauwa'' (2011).Uzor Maxim Uzoat,
"The abiding relevance of Erediauwa"
''The Guardian'' (Nigeria), 5 June 2016. As described by the author: "The book's journalistic format has technically provided for 84 pages of photography featuring about 150 original photographs, accompanied by 72 pages of text; all about the Benin City Coronation ceremonies of Oba

Erediauwa Erediauwa (22 June 1923 – April 2016) was the 39th Oba of Benin, traditional ruler of the Edo people in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. Formerly known as Prince Solomon Akenzua, Oba Erediauwa's full title was ''His Royal Majesty Omo n'Oba n ...

as the 38th Oba of the

Benin Kingdom The Kingdom of Benin, also known as the Edo Kingdom, or the Benin Empire ( Bini: ') was a kingdom within what is now southern Nigeria. It has no historical relation to the modern republic of Benin, which was known as Dahomey from the 17th c ...

, from March 23 to 30, 1979." Nigeria's ''

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unite ...

'' newspaper judged that Fiofori "paints a poetically enchanting picture", and said: "The author undertakes a very insightful rendering of the dynasties of the Benin Kingdom and gives an elaborate account of the 45-year reign of Oba

Akenzua II Ọmọ n'Ọba n'Ẹdo Uku Akpọlọkpọlọ, Akenzua II (7 January 1899 – 11 June 1978) was the Oba of Benin (traditional leader of the Edo people, in Nigeria) from 1933 until his death in 1978. Akenzua II was enthroned as Oba of Benin in ...

which started on April 5, 1933.... Tam Fiofori has through his groundbreaking book, A Benin Coronation: Oba Erediauwa, given Nigeria and the rest of the world a timeless study in lofty heritage." He is a contributor to the 2018 book ''African Photographer J. A. Green: Re-imagining the Indigenous and the Colonial'' (edited by Martha G. Anderson and Lisa Aronson), in a review of which

Lindsay Barrett Carlton Lindsay Barrett (born 15 September 1941), also known as Eseoghene, is a Jamaican-born poet, novelist, essayist, playwright, journalist and photographer, whose work has interacted with the Caribbean Artists Movement in the UK, the Black ...

referred to Fiofori as "Nigeria’s iconic photographic genius".

Awards

Among honours Fiofori has received are awards from the

(PAWA), iRepresent International Documentary Film Festival, and Music in Africa.

Films

* ''Odum and Water Masquerades'', 1974 * ''Biodun Olaku: Nigerian Painter'' * ''J. D. ‘Okhai Ojeikere: Master Photographer'' * ''Olu Amoda: A Metallic Journey'', 2015 (60 mins)

Exhibitions

* 2006/7: ''Bayelsa @ 10''. Yenagoa, Abuja. * 2010: ''1979: A Peep into History and Culture''. Oba's Palace, Benin City; Hexagon, Benin City"Tam Fiofori images exhibited in Benin Palace"
nigeriang.com, 28 April 2010.

References

External links

Tam Fiofori's Place

Tam Fiofori
at ''Artslant'' magazine {{DEFAULTSORT:Fiofori, Tam Living people 1942 births 20th-century photographers 21st-century photographers Alumni of King's College London Film directors from Rivers State King's College, Lagos alumni Nigerian film critics Nigerian film directors Nigerian journalists Nigerian photographers People from Benin City People from Okrika Writers from Rivers State